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Synonyms

rash

1 American  
[rash] / ræʃ /

adjective

rasher, rashest
  1. acting or tending to act too hastily or without due consideration.

    Synonyms:
    foolhardy, indiscreet, precipitate, incautious, venturous, reckless, impetuous, hasty
    Antonyms:
    cautious
  2. characterized by or showing too great haste or lack of consideration.

    rash promises.


rash 2 American  
[rash] / ræʃ /

noun

  1. an eruption or efflorescence on the skin.

  2. a multitude of instances of something occurring more or less during the same period of time.

    a rash of robberies last month.


rash 1 British  
/ ræʃ /

adjective

  1. acting without due consideration or thought; impetuous

  2. characterized by or resulting from excessive haste or impetuosity

    a rash word

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

rash 2 British  
/ ræʃ /

noun

  1. pathol any skin eruption

  2. a series of unpleasant and unexpected occurrences

    a rash of forest fires

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

What does rash mean? Rash describes acting too quickly and without proper planning, as in James was rash when he decided to quit his job after just one hard day.Rash also describes a great haste or a lack of consideration, such as Sahad avoided making rash decisions by doing a lot of research first. A rash is a skin condition, such as bumps or a red area, like you might get if you touch poison ivy.A rash is also several instances of something that occur at the same or nearly the same time, such as a rash of snowstorms over a week or a rash of electronic sales during the winter holidays.Example: He always jumps head first into rash decisions, but sometimes it works out.

Other Word Forms

  • rashlike adjective
  • rashly adverb
  • rashness noun

Etymology

Origin of rash1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; cognate with Dutch, German rasch “quick, brisk,” Old Norse rǫskr “brave”

Origin of rash2

1700–10; < French rache (obsolete), Old French rasche skin eruption, derivative of raschier to scratch, ultimately < Latin rādere to scratch

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.

Tirayut says his oldest daughter, six, "had nosebleeds, a rash, and an allergic reaction in her eyes, to the point where her eyelids were swollen".

From BBC

"I took her to the vet three times. And two times, the vet said, don't worry about it, it's just a rash," he said.

From Barron's

But soon after, a rash started spreading over her body, while her temperature rose to 40°C - she was experiencing a severe fever.

From BBC

But Ducournau adds a haunting new touch, depicting the infected as developing a silvery rash across their skin before eventually morphing into porcelain-like statues as they die.

From Los Angeles Times

Early Lyme symptoms include a rash, fatigue, muscle and joint pain, headache and fever, but can often be overlooked or misinterpreted.

From The Wall Street Journal