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Question:

What's usually called in US a basin permanently installed with running water that is used for washing up, washing clothes, etc.?

sink, bathroom sink, washbasin, washbowl, wash pan, lavatory, something else?Definition of LAVATORYlav·a·to·ry (l?v′?-t?r′ē)n. pl. lav·a·to·ries1. A room equipped with washing and often toilet facilities; a bathroom.2. A washbowl or basin, especially one permanently installed with running water.3. A flush toilet.[Middle English, piscina, from Late Latin lavātōrium, from lavātor, launderer, from Latin lavāre, to wash; see leu(?)- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]Source: American Heritage? Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition

Answer:

A sink is for general washing of articles; a wash hand basin is specifically for hand washing, these evolved from the jug and basin that were used before plumbed services were available.
It depends
Sink.
Be aware that in the UK, 'washing up' means 'washing the dishes and pans after a meal', but in the US, 'washing up' means 'washing your hands before a meal'.
The word is &sink.& A sink used for washing clothes is a &laundry sink,& but you can call a laundry sink simply a &sink& as well. We have a laundry sink in our basement, not that we wash clothes in it, but it's in the laundry room next to the washing machine and is large and deep and was designed with the intention of being able to wash clothes in it. That said, if it were to get clogged, I might say, &The laundry sink is clogged,& but I might also say, &The sink in the basement is clogged.& You don't have to call it a laundry sink. You can call anything like what you describe simply a &sink.& The only time a basin isn't a sink is when it has high walls and is low to the ground, like what people sit in when they bathe, then it's called a &tub.&

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