gash

¹ American  

[gash] / gæʃ /

noun

• gashes
  plural

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)

• gashes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• gashed,
  past participle,  past
• gashing
  present participle

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

Derived Forms

• ungashed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• gashes
  plural

Participles

• gashing
  present
• gashed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• gash
  simple
• gashes
  simple
• have gashed
  perfect
• has gashed
  perfect
• am gashing
  progressive
• are gashing
  progressive
• is gashing
  progressive
• have been gashing
  perfect progressive
• has been gashing
  perfect progressive

Past

• gashed
  simple
• had gashed
  perfect
• was gashing
  progressive
• were gashing
  progressive
• had been gashing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will gash
  simple
• will have gashed
  perfect
• will be gashing
  progressive
• will have been gashing
  perfect progressive

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

See Examples For:

gash gashes gashed gashing

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

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

An even bigger gash tore open behind him.

From "I Survived the Great Alaska Earthquake, 1964" by Lauren Tarshis

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

Adrift offshore were a plethora of stricken yachts, some overturned, others displaying deep gashes; masts, motors and radio equipment were squished together with coconuts, fishing lines, palm fronds and other maritime detritus.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2023

Luke slipped out of his shirt, grabbed hold of the sleeves and tore them, leaving huge gashes a breeze could pass through.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

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

Mendoza contributed to the strong Indiana run game, frustrating the gashed Tide defense.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 1, 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

She falls to her knees beside my bed and takes my gashed hand in hers.

From "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary E. Pearson

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

And by gashing Atlanta’s defense, the Commanders again were able to effectively control the clock.

From Washington Times ● Nov. 27, 2022

He turned to escape and Mr. Majury sprinted forward but fell, gashing his knee.

From New York Times ● Feb. 17, 2022

The defensive line is not the sole reason the season is on the brink — other factors include a slow start to the year and inconsistent quarterbacking — but its gashing Tuesday was glaring.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 22, 2021

“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