quash
Americanverb (used with object)
-
quashes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
quashed,
past participle, past
-
quashing
present participle
verb
-
to subdue forcefully and completely; put down; suppress
-
to annul or make void (a law, decision, etc)
-
to reject (an indictment, writ, etc) as invalid
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
quashsimple
-
quashessimple
-
have quashedperfect
-
has quashedperfect
-
am quashingprogressive
-
are quashingprogressive
-
is quashingprogressive
-
have been quashingperfect progressive
-
has been quashingperfect progressive
Past
-
quashedsimple
-
had quashedperfect
-
was quashingprogressive
-
were quashingprogressive
-
had been quashingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of quash
1300–50; Middle English quashen to smash, break, overcome, suppress < Old French quasser, in part < Latin quassāre to shake (frequentative of quatere to shake; cf. concussion); in part < Late Latin cassāre to annul, derivative of Latin cassus empty, void
Explanation
Quash means to put down, stop, extinguish, and it’s usually used to talk about ideas, feelings, or political movements. You wouldn’t quash a grape underfoot; you would squash it. But if you were a military dictator, you would quash a revolution. Quash is an extreme word. It comes from the French word for smash, or shatter. If something is quashed it is completely suppressed, usually by something or someone very powerful or authoritative. If you wrote a poem and asked your favorite teacher to read it, and that teacher tore it to pieces, then your hopes were most likely quashed.
Vocabulary lists containing quash
40 SAT words Beginning with "Q"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Change Your Mind
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Scrabble: Words that Begin with Q
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Trend-following funds thrived in 2022, when both stocks and bonds struggled as the Federal Reserve hiked interest rates to quash rapid inflation.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026
A court hearing will be held on Thursday afternoon to consider this bid to quash the warrants, with the hearing set to begin in private.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Alvarez’s intervention work primarily focused on using his gang contacts to help quash disputes and acting as a middleman between people scared to report crimes to police and law enforcement officials, according to Garcia-Leys.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
On Wednesday, Patterson's lawyers urged the judges to quash her conviction.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
I have quite enough to do at the moment without trying to quash these ridiculous rumors.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
Critics maintain that it reinforces privilege and quashes diversity.
From New York Times ● Jul. 27, 2023
He said he hoped the court reaches "the right decision and quashes the conviction" after three senior judges set his appeal for July.
From BBC ● May 3, 2023
When pressed if he’s experienced that type of idolization himself, he quashes the idea: “I’ve seen where that goes. That’s a lesson I learned the hard way, from losing a friend.”
From Washington Post ● Nov. 21, 2022
If there was any lingering doubt that Brutalism — the architectural style derided for everything the name implies — was back in fashion, the “Atlas of Brutalist Architecture” quashes it with a monumental thump.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 9, 2019
Which expression, translated into English means, he quashes it.
From The Book of Khalid by Ameen Fares Rihani
Then, following a legal challenge brought by a member of the Orange Order, a High Court quashed that decision in August and a parades commissioner resigned.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026
Separately, the same court quashed the conviction of Christian Bittar.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
Clare buttonholed Archer and, according to his own account, the would-be candidate burst into tears and asked that the story be quashed.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
The issue was revived in August when the High Court quashed the commission's latest restriction because of procedural failings, without ruling that the Order had a right to march along Garvaghy Road.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
The sounds and smells have quashed my appetite.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
"I have no hesitation in making the quashing order," Mr Justice McAlinden said.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
A federal judge denied the Department of Justice’s motion to vacate an order quashing subpoenas, citing harassment of former Fed chair Jerome Powell.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
Most important, she outmaneuvered the Texas judge by quashing the subpoena itself, finding that it was an illegitimate and unconstitutional invasion of privacy.
From Slate ● May 19, 2026
The real-estate lobby had been successful in quashing previous efforts to tax second homes, including in 2014 and 2019.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
In addition we are asked to make an order quashing the decision of the Commissioner that the airline should pay to the Department of Justice the sum of $150,000 by way of costs.
From Judgments of the Court of Appeal of New Zealand on Proceedings to Review Aspects of the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Mount Erebus Aircraft Disaster C.A. 95/81 by New Zealand. Court of Appeal
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
