mash

¹ American  

[mash] / mæʃ /

verb (used with object)

1. to crush.

   He mashed his thumb with a hammer.

2. to reduce to a soft, pulpy mass, as by beating or pressure, especially in the preparation of food.

3. to mix (crushed malt or meal of grain) with hot water to form wort.

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noun

1. a soft, pulpy mass.

2. a pulpy condition.

3. a mixture of boiled grain, bran, meal, etc., fed warm to horses and cattle.

4. crushed malt or meal of grain mixed with hot water to form wort.

5. British Slang. mashed potatoes.

mash ² American  

[mash] / mæʃ /

noun

1. a flirtation or infatuation.

2. a person who seeks another's affection or who is the object of affection.

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verb (used with object)

1. to flirt with; court the affections of.

MASH ³ American  

[mash] / mæʃ /

noun

1. mobile army surgical hospital.

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mash ¹ British  

/ mæʃ /

noun

1. a soft pulpy mass or consistency

2. agriculture a feed of bran, meal, or malt mixed with water and fed to horses, cattle, or poultry

3. (esp in brewing) a mixture of mashed malt grains and hot water, from which malt is extracted

4. informal mashed potatoes

5. dialect a brew of tea

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verb

1. to beat or crush into a mash

2. to steep (malt grains) in hot water in order to extract malt, esp for making malt liquors

3. dialect to brew (tea)

4. archaic to flirt with

MASH ² British  

/ mæʃ /

acronym

1. Mobile Army Surgical Hospital

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Other Word Forms

• mashed adjective
• masher noun

Etymology

Origin of mash¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English mash- and Old English mǣsc-, noun used in compounds, as in Middle English mashfat and Old English mǣscfat “mash-vat,” and mǣscwyrt “mash wort”; cognate with German Maische

Origin of mash²

First recorded in 1870–75; originally theatrical argot; further origin uncertain; flirt ( def. ), sweetheart, lover

Example Sentences

But one who orders up quality stocks might be served a choice of two ETFs as far apart as mashed potatoes and marshmallows.

From Barron's

But one who orders up quality stocks might be served a choice of two ETFs as far apart as mashed potatoes and marshmallows.

From Barron's

To attract increasingly discerning consumers, Kroger has offered a precooked holiday meal for eight of turkey or ham, stuffing, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, cranberry and gravy for about $11 a person.

From Los Angeles Times

Woodstock’s bananas are steamed and mashed with “proprietary enzymes” to release nutrients.

From Los Angeles Times

Our first review was in September 2023, when I described the drive as a “mash of a teenager with a learner’s permit and an octogenarian.”

From Barron's

Related Words

• chew
• crush
• grind
• scrunch
• squeeze
• squish