dishwasher salt

noun

A form of granulated sodium chloride used to soften the water in dishwashers.

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Meanings

noundishwasher salt (uncountable)
  1. uncountableA form of granulated sodium chloride used to soften the water in dishwashers.

    Dishwasher salt is sodium chloride (salt, see page 326) and is used to prevent scaling of the machine, not in the dishwashing process.

    1997, Nicola Bates, Paediatric toxicology: handbook of poisoning in children, page 132
    2 more examples

    Very pure sodium chloride is also used as dishwasher salt. This keeps the built-in water softener working and stops the plates from getting white deposits on them.

    2007, Nigel Saunders, Exploring Chemical Reactions, page 27

    This is the method of operation used in dishwashers that require the use of “dishwasher salt.” The salt is used to recharge an ion exchange resin, which itself is used to soften the water so that limescale deposits are not left on the cooking and eating utensils being washed.

    2011, Nduka Okafor, Environmental Microbiology of Aquatic and Waste Systems, page 232
Cite this entry
APA

dishwasher salt. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dishwasher%20salt

MLA

“dishwasher salt.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dishwasher%20salt. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “dishwasher salt,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dishwasher%20salt.

Source: dishwasher salt on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.