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There are two quash verbs in the English language, and although their meanings are similar, they have entirely different origins. Both essentially mean to get rid of something—you can quash a rumor, for example, or you can quash a judicial order. The legal term quash (meaning "to nullify") comes from the Anglo-French words casser or quasser, meaning "to annul," and is ultimately from Latin cassus, "to void." The other quash means "to suppress or extinguish summarily and completely." It derives from the Middle English word quashen, meaning "to smash," and is ultimately from a form of the Latin verb quatere, meaning "to shake."
Examples of quash in a Sentence
Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 12 Mar. 2026
Police declined to respond to an inquiry from the Idaho Statesman about when Gebran was located, but court records show that an Ada County judge quashed a search warrant related to Gebran on Tuesday.
—Shannon Tyler, Idaho Statesman, 12 Mar. 2026
Last week, Lai won an appeal to quash his convictions and sentence in a separate fraud case, a rare victory in his legal battles.
—ABC News, 6 Mar. 2026
Ethnic insurgencies may present the most realistic internal threat to the Iranian regime, which has quashed civil society and pro-democracy protest movements for years.
—Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 6 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for quash
Cite this Entry
“Quash.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quash. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
quash
2 of 2 verbVerb
Middle English quashen "to smash," from early French quasser, casser (same meaning), from Latin quassare "to shake violently, shatter," from quatere "to shake"
Verb
Middle English quashen "to nullify," from early French casser, quasser "to annul," from Latin cassare (same meaning), from earlier Latin cassus "void"
Legal Definition
quash
transitive verbTransitive verb
Anglo-French quasser, from Middle French casser, quasser, from Late Latin cassare, from Latin cassus void
