bath vs bathe

[Beverly Flanigan]

My mother always used "bathing suit," but I don't hear it much now and
monitor my own usage in fear of being labeled "old."  She also went
"bath(e)ing" whether in the sea, a Minnesota lake, or a tub.  And aren't
"bath(e)ing beaches" still common?

At 02:02 AM 8/24/2002 -0700, you wrote:
>Per Lynn's report of British "bathe-ing" in the sea vs "bath-ing" in a
>tub, remember that Americans still use "bathing suit" for swimming, even
>though we don't bathe in them. ("Swimsuit" seems to be pushing out the
>older term commercially and in the media -- Sports Illustrated, etc.).
>
>         Rudy