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
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
The High Court was told on Tuesday that the commission conceded the case last week and requested the court quash its determination before a full hearing.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
On Wednesday, Patterson's lawyers urged the judges to quash her conviction.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
Whether this statement will be enough to quash the rumors that several bodies were removed from the woods an hour later, remains to be seen.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
Many officers have described to me problems that include “kill the messenger” management that quashes bad news, as well as dangerous supervision lapses, watered-down policing standards and policing-knowledge gaps.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 15, 2024
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
The Big Apple quashes them quickly in “I Mean Business,” the show’s efficient opener.
From New York Times ● Aug. 8, 2022
Playoff realities might have eased occasional losses because only a second loss quashes the dream.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 9, 2022
Outside old Mrs. Picture's door comes a moment of irresolution, but she quashes it and goes on.
From When Ghost Meets Ghost by William Frend De Morgan
Separately, the same court quashed the conviction of Christian Bittar.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
The Court of Appeal has quashed the conviction of Christian Bittar, a former Deutsche Bank trader who went to prison in 2018 for "manipulating" the benchmark interest rate, Euribor.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 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
Last month, a decision by the Parades Commission to impose restrictions on a proposed Orange Order parade at Drumcree in Portadown was quashed in the High Court.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
De Wet then quashed the indictment and gaveled the session to a close.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Patterson's barrister Richard Edney said this "catastrophic" situation had "undermined the integrity of the verdicts and requires the quashing of the convictions".
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 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
For decades, corporate executives have been quashing workers’ efforts to gain a fair reward for their labor.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 6, 2026
The right of impeaching every French subject who is not a prince of the blood; the right of quashing all proceedings taken against any Frenchman, who is neither king nor prince.
From Louise de la Valliere by Alexandre Dumas père
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.
