botched; botching; botches
1
: to foul up hopelessly
—often used with up
2
: to put together in a makeshift way
botcher
noun
2
Synonyms
Verb
- blow
- bobble
- boggle
- bollix (up)
- boot
- bugger (up)
- bumble
- bungle
- butcher
- dub
- flub
- fluff
- foozle
- foul up
- fumble
- goof (up)
- louse up
- mangle
- mess (up)
- muck up
- muff
- murder
- screw up
Noun (2)
- agglomerate
- agglomeration
- alphabet soup
- assortment
- clutter
- collage
- crazy quilt
- farrago
- gallimaufry
- grab bag
- gumbo
- hash
- hodgepodge
- hotchpotch
- jambalaya
- jumble
- jungle
- litter
- macédoine
- medley
- mélange
- menagerie
- miscellanea
- miscellany
- mishmash
- mixed bag
- montage
- motley
- muddle
- olio
- olla podrida
- omnium-gatherum
- pastiche
- patchwork
- patchwork quilt
- potpourri
- ragbag
- ragout
- rummage
- salad
- salmagundi
- scramble
- shuffle
- smorgasbord
- stew
- tumble
- variety
- welter
Examples of botch in a Sentence
Verb
The store botched the order—I received only half the books I paid for.
They clearly botched the investigation.
Recent Examples on the Web
San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Aug. 2023
Giménez botches bunt, homers instead to lead Guardians past White Sox in 4-2 win
The chirping between Anderson, Chicago’s shortstop, and Arias, Cleveland’s first baseman, started well before the sixth-inning fight between Anderson and Jose Ramirez.
—Paul Hoynes, cleveland, 6 Aug. 2023
The botch required the rescoring of 300,000 exams, scholastic victims of the knotty coin rotation paradox.
—Jack Murtagh, Scientific American, 20 June 2023
These games are a moral botch.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 19 Nov. 2022
There was an early botch on a leapfrog that seemed to drag this match down, especially with the crowd being mostly silent for it.
—Alfred Konuwa, Forbes, 17 Oct. 2021
The 1961 Cuba invasion was an epic presidential botch—and yet, Kennedy’s standing improved afterward.
—Fredrik Logevall, The New Republic, 24 Aug. 2021
The absurd unmasked mob scene/gauntlet Phil had to walk through — not to mention our Bryce Miller, who was in danger and on deadline — on the 18th was a major botch by the PGA.
—Nick Canepa Columnist, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 May 2021
Arkansas caught Alabama napping with an onside kick before a botch punt snap led to an easy touchdown for the Razorbacks.
—Michael Casagrande | McAsagrande@al.com, al, 1 Oct. 2022
Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2023
Ever since Boeing botched the development of the 787 Dreamliner in the 2000s, aerospace firms have been battling to rectify defects.
—Jon Sindreu, WSJ, 20 Oct. 2023
As part of a bitter feud with Prigozhin, the Defense Ministry eventually barred Wagner from prison recruitment as military officials worked to limit the mercenary leader’s involvement in the war following his public rants accusing the country’s top brass of botching the invasion.
—Mary Ilyushina, Washington Post, 26 Oct. 2023
In 2017, Tussauds botched its Beyoncé figure only to reveal a better one in 2019 after outcry.
—Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2023
The defense botched the cross examination of Caroline Ellison.
—Elizabeth Lopatto, The Verge, 12 Oct. 2023
Arizona’s 28-point total would have been a solid performance from the defense had the special teams not botched a chip-shot field goal as the fourth quarter expired.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2023
Davis’ review led to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences to examine the case, and the agency ruled that not only had the medical examiner botched the autopsy, but the baby was stillborn.
—Duaa Eldeib, ProPublica, 7 Oct. 2023
When the fight was over, some progressive activists contended that Ms. Feinstein had botched the confirmation process by keeping Dr. Ford’s accusations secret for weeks, until the fight was nearly concluded.
—Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2023
See More
Noun
This is a disgrace, an extreme, unexplainable botch.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Aug. 2023
Giménez botches bunt, homers instead to lead Guardians past White Sox in 4-2 win
The chirping between Anderson, Chicago’s shortstop, and Arias, Cleveland’s first baseman, started well before the sixth-inning fight between Anderson and Jose Ramirez.
—Paul Hoynes, cleveland, 6 Aug. 2023
The botch required the rescoring of 300,000 exams, scholastic victims of the knotty coin rotation paradox.
—Jack Murtagh, Scientific American, 20 June 2023
These games are a moral botch.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 19 Nov. 2022
There was an early botch on a leapfrog that seemed to drag this match down, especially with the crowd being mostly silent for it.
—Alfred Konuwa, Forbes, 17 Oct. 2021
The 1961 Cuba invasion was an epic presidential botch—and yet, Kennedy’s standing improved afterward.
—Fredrik Logevall, The New Republic, 24 Aug. 2021
The absurd unmasked mob scene/gauntlet Phil had to walk through — not to mention our Bryce Miller, who was in danger and on deadline — on the 18th was a major botch by the PGA.
—Nick Canepa Columnist, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 May 2021
Arkansas caught Alabama napping with an onside kick before a botch punt snap led to an easy touchdown for the Razorbacks.
—Michael Casagrande | McAsagrande@al.com, al, 1 Oct. 2022
Verb
Before Gentry and the defense made that final stop, the offense botched two of its own two-point attempts.
—Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2023
Ever since Boeing botched the development of the 787 Dreamliner in the 2000s, aerospace firms have been battling to rectify defects.
—Jon Sindreu, WSJ, 20 Oct. 2023
As part of a bitter feud with Prigozhin, the Defense Ministry eventually barred Wagner from prison recruitment as military officials worked to limit the mercenary leader’s involvement in the war following his public rants accusing the country’s top brass of botching the invasion.
—Mary Ilyushina, Washington Post, 26 Oct. 2023
In 2017, Tussauds botched its Beyoncé figure only to reveal a better one in 2019 after outcry.
—Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2023
The defense botched the cross examination of Caroline Ellison.
—Elizabeth Lopatto, The Verge, 12 Oct. 2023
Arizona’s 28-point total would have been a solid performance from the defense had the special teams not botched a chip-shot field goal as the fourth quarter expired.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2023
Davis’ review led to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences to examine the case, and the agency ruled that not only had the medical examiner botched the autopsy, but the baby was stillborn.
—Duaa Eldeib, ProPublica, 7 Oct. 2023
When the fight was over, some progressive activists contended that Ms. Feinstein had botched the confirmation process by keeping Dr. Ford’s accusations secret for weeks, until the fight was nearly concluded.
—Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'botch.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1)
Middle English boche, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *bottia boss
Verb
Middle English bocchen
First Known Use
Noun (1)
14th century, in the meaning defined above
Verb
1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Noun (2)
1648, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of botch was
in the 14th century
Phrases Containing botch
Dictionary Entries Near botch
Cite this Entry
“Botch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/botch. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition
Medical Definition
botch
noun
: an inflammatory sore
More from Merriam-Webster on botch
Nglish: Translation of botch for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of botch for Arabic Speakers
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