Songfacts®:

• "Wash Off" is an encouragement to take a break, shake off the cobwebs, and seize the day.
  
  Stop the clocks, pull up your socks
  Go find a fountain to wash it off
  
  Much of the lyrical content of the first half of Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost - Part 2 is about escaping both from imagined and real threats. This song follows on from "The Runner," which is about persevering despite the troubles we are facing. Singer Yannis Philippakis explained to DIY magazine that "Wash Off" alludes to "trying to find selfish reasons to keep on going and enjoy your life."
• The song's lyric video, released during the ongoing effects of coronavirus panic, plays off the title by turning the clip into a hand-washing PSA. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that to wash your hands effectively, you must scrub often with soap and water for 20 seconds. The clip shows viewers on a loop the 20 second process necessary to wash your hands properly and rid them of COVID-19.