gash
1 Americannoun
-
gashes
plural
-
a long, deep wound or cut; slash.
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Slang: Vulgar.
-
the vagina.
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Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a contemptuous term used to refer to a woman considered as a sex object.
-
verb (used with object)
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gashes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
gashed,
past participle, past
-
gashing
present participle
adjective
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wise, sagacious.
-
neat; well-dressed; well-groomed.
adjective
verb
noun
adjective
Sensitivity
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
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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gashsimple
-
gashessimple
-
have gashedperfect
-
has gashedperfect
-
am gashingprogressive
-
are gashingprogressive
-
is gashingprogressive
-
have been gashingperfect progressive
-
has been gashingperfect progressive
Past
-
gashedsimple
-
had gashedperfect
-
was gashingprogressive
-
were gashingprogressive
-
had been gashingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing gash
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act III
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Holes
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The gash on her forehead was determined to be superficial and not a contributing factor in her death.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
“They took some form of knife or blade, and put a 250 foot long gash into the beautiful facade of what took so much work, competence, and money to build and complete,” Trump said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
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
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
I was afraid, but the dog wagged its tail and licked the crusty gash on my arm.
From "Milkweed" by Jerry Spinelli
One day the pioneers who had planted the first trees on the windswept coastal plateau discovered huge gashes in the rich vegetation.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
Satellite images of Yapacana National Park in Amazonas show deep gashes in the earth, where miners have dug enormous open pits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 25, 2026
Weeping orange gashes oozed spores that spiraled down the harrowed bodies of the ancient giants.
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2023
He pressed Bud, forcing his way through the gashes and touched up the champ, pushing Bud back a bit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2023
His hair was longer than Harry had ever seen it: He appeared to have suffered several gashes to his face and his clothes were ripped and torn.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Winger Kyle Steyn, who has scored three tries in the tournament, is fit after going off with a gashed leg last weekend.
From BBC ● Mar. 12, 2026
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni visited Wednesday, flying by helicopter over the gashed hillside and deep fissures in fields below.
From Barron's ● Jan. 28, 2026
Tagovailoa threw three interceptions, and the defense got gashed after Tagovailoa fought back to give them the late lead.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2025
This is a defense that has been last in the NFL in yards passing since that season opener and repeatedly has been gashed for explosive moments.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2023
Mandingham rose, his shoulder bruised and his foreleg gashed by Fair Knightess’s hoof but otherwise uninjured.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
The 49ers took advantage of Heyward’s absence, gashing the Steelers on the ground behind Christian McCaffery.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 10, 2023
Though Riley was careful not to openly criticize Grinch or any defender individually, he acknowledged that he was concerned about all those gashing runs and long passes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 2, 2023
He’s not gashing teams as he was this time last season, but the defending rushing champ seems to have put this season back on track.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 5, 2022
She makes color-field paintings, including some with Gene Davis-like stripes, that she finishes by gashing with hundreds of small incisions.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 18, 2022
“We appreciate your sentiments,” said Fflewddur, “but with that leg of yours, you’re hardly up to slashing or gashing or anything at all.”
From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander
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