gash

¹ American  

[gash] / gæʃ /

noun

1. a long, deep wound or cut; slash.

2. Slang: Vulgar.

   1. the vagina.

   2. Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a contemptuous term used to refer to a woman considered as a sex object.

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verb (used with object)

1. to make a long, deep cut in; slash.

gash ² American  

[gash] / gæʃ /

adjective

Chiefly Scot.

1. wise, sagacious.

2. neat; well-dressed; well-groomed.

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gash ³ American  

[gash] / gæʃ /

adjective

Scot. Archaic.

1. dreary or gloomy in appearance.

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gash ¹ British  

/ ɡæʃ /

verb

1. (tr) to make a long deep cut or wound in; slash

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noun

1. a long deep cut or wound

gash ² British  

/ ɡæʃ /

adjective

1. slang surplus to requirements; unnecessary, extra, or spare

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Sensitive Note

When referring to a female, this term is used with disparaging intent and perceived as highly insulting. The word cunt shows a similar transfer of meaning from a woman’s genitalia to the woman herself.

Other Word Forms

• ungashed
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of gash¹

First recorded in 1540–50; alteration of Middle English garsen, garcen “to make medical incisions” (with alteration of s to sh after r), from Old French garser, jarsier “to scarify, wound,” from unrecoreded Vulgar Latin charaxāre, from Greek charássein “to scratch, notch”; see origin at character

Origin of gash²

First recorded in 1700–10; origin uncertain

Origin of gash³

First recorded in 1580–90; origin uncertain

Explanation

A gash is a deep cut, like a gash on your knee from a biking accident, or a gash in the earth caused by workers who are digging up a broken sewer. The noun gash describes a wound or cut, so it makes sense that as a verb, gash describes the act of making that wound or cut, as in, people signing up for a knife skills class taught by a chef because they are tired of gashing their fingers when chopping vegetables.

Example Sentences

Ball needed treatment for a gash near his eye after colliding with Lee as he scrambled to grab a loose pass in the first quarter.

From Barron's • Feb. 3, 2026

Radcliffe had been given six weeks to trace that gash through the map of British India.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 30, 2026

Figure, a startup with a $39 billion valuation, was sued last month by a former engineer who claims a malfunctioning robot had “carved a one-quarter-inch gash into a steel refrigerator door.”

From MarketWatch • Dec. 27, 2025

A dropped catch off his own bowling left Bashir with a gash on his right hand and the need to temporarily to leave the field.

From BBC • May 23, 2025

But the former president knew what a bloody gash to his leg really meant, especially in the unknown and unforgiving jungle.

From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple