squash

verb

/skwɒʃ/

/skwɑːʃ/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they squash	/skwɒʃ/ /skwɑːʃ/
he / she / it squashes	/ˈskwɒʃɪz/ /ˈskwɑːʃɪz/
past simple squashed	/skwɒʃt/ /skwɑːʃt/
past participle squashed	/skwɒʃt/ /skwɑːʃt/
-ing form squashing	/ˈskwɒʃɪŋ/ /ˈskwɑːʃɪŋ/

Phrasal Verbs

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[transitive] to press something so that it becomes soft, damaged or flat, or changes shape
- squash something/somebody The tomatoes at the bottom of the bag had been squashed.
- Move up—you’re squashing me!
- squash something against something He squashed his nose against the window.
- squash something + adj. Squash your cans flat before recycling.
[intransitive, transitive] to push somebody/something or yourself into a space that is too small
- + adv./prep. We all squashed into the back of the car.
- squash somebody/something + adv./prep. How many people are they going to try and squash into this bus?
- She was squashed between the door and the table.
- There were dozens of us in the room, squashed together like sardines.
[transitive] squash something to stop something from continuing; to destroy something because it is a problem for you synonym quash
- to squash a plan/an idea/a revolt
- If parents don't answer children's questions, their natural curiosity will be squashed.
- The statement was an attempt to squash the rumours.

Word Originverb mid 16th cent. (as a verb): alteration of quash.

squash

noun

/skwɒʃ/

/skwɑːʃ/

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(also formal squash rackets)
[uncountable] a game for two players, played in a court surrounded by four walls, using rackets and a small rubber ball
- a squash court
- to play squash
CultureIn the game of squash one player must hit the ball against the front wall, after which it can bounce against other walls and/or the floor before the other player hits it. It is a very fast game, which many people play as a way of keeping fit. It developed from the game of rackets but is now played by many more people. In the US form of the game, the ball is harder and the regular court smaller than in Britain. There are also larger courts for games of doubles (= for four players), which are more popular in the US than in Britain.
Topics Sports: ball and racket sportsb2
[uncountable, countable] (British English) a drink made with fruit juice, sugar and water
- a glass of orange/lemon squash
- Two orange squashes, please.
Topics Drinksc2
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[countable, uncountable]
(plural squash, squashes)
a type of vegetable that grows on the ground. Winter squash have hard skin and are orange inside. Summer squash have soft yellow or green skin and are white inside.
[singular] (informal) if something is a squash, there is hardly enough room for everything or everyone to fit into a small space
- It's a real squash with six of us in the car.

Word Originnoun senses 1 to 2 and noun sense 4 mid 16th cent. (as a verb): alteration of quash. noun sense 3 mid 17th cent.: abbreviation of Narragansett asquutasquash. Narragansett is an extinct Algonquian language.