From Greek spongía, probably of pre-Greek substrate origin — natural sponges have been used for cleaning since antiquity.
A porous aquatic animal or a piece of absorbent material used for washing, cleaning, or padding.
From Old English sponge (later reinforced by Old French esponge), from Latin spongia, from Greek spongía, spongiá 'sponge.' The Greek word is probably of pre-Greek substrate origin. Natural sea sponges were used for cleaning since antiquity; synthetic sponges only appeared in the 1940s. Key