squash

I. verb Etymology: alteration of Middle English squachen to crush, annul, from Anglo-French esquacher, from Old French es- ex- + quachier to hide from view, from Vulgar Latin *coacticare to press together — more at cache Date: 1565 transitive verb 1. to press or beat into a pulp or a flat mass ; crush 2. put down, suppress <

squash a revolt

> intransitive verb 1. to flatten out under pressure or impact 2. to proceed with a splashing or squelching sound <

squash through the mud

> 3. squeeze, press • squasher noun II. noun Date: 1590 1. obsolete something soft and easily crushed; specifically an unripe pod of peas 2. the sudden fall of a heavy soft body or the sound of such a fall 3. squelch 1 4. a crushed mass 5. British sweetened citrus fruit juice often served with added soda water 6. a singles or doubles game played in a 4-wall court with a long-handled racket and a rubber ball that can be hit off any number of walls III. adverb Date: 1766 with a squash or a squashing sound IV. noun (plural squashes or squash) Etymology: by shortening & alteration from earlier isquoutersquash, from Narragansett askútasquash Date: 1634 any of various fruits of plants (genus Cucurbita) of the gourd family widely cultivated as vegetables; also a plant and especially a vine that bears squashes — compare summer squash, winter squash