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• mash
  mash

  verb (used with object)

  to crush.
• MASH
  MASH

  noun

  mobile army surgical hospital.

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; cf. flirt ( def. ), sweetheart, lover

Explanation

When you mash something, you crush it. You might, for example, mash a marshmallow by stepping on it. Recipes for banana bread almost always include an instruction to mash some bananas — in other words, you need to squish and press on them until they no longer look like bananas. A bully might mash your carefully constructed sandcastle, crushing it down to the beach. The word mash seems to be related to mix, both probably rooted in the Proto-Indo-European meik, "to mix."

Example Sentences

Appeared in the December 27, 2025, print edition as 'A Tariff Mash for Kentucky Whiskey'.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 26, 2025

Just a few storefronts away from the now-vacant Button Mash, Sick City Records is on the brink of sharing the same fate.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 8, 2025

Mr Mash believes the size of the studio, and the flexibility of the outside space, is what has made it an attractive destination for production teams.

From BBC • Sep. 8, 2024

Mash potato in the cooking water and pour into a large measuring cup.

From Salon • Mar. 12, 2024

Her recurring post “Mish Mash Friday,” a jumble of thoughts, drew the most clicks and comments each week.

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Related Words

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