botch

English

Wikipedia

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /bɒt͡ʃ/, X-SAMPA: /bQtS/
• (GenAm) IPA: /bɑːt͡ʃ/, X-SAMPA: /bA:tS/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɒtʃ

Etymology 1

Middle English bocchen (“to mend”), of uncertain origin.

Verb

botch (third-person singular simple present botches, present participle botching, simple past and past participle botched)

1. (transitive) To perform (a task) in an unacceptable or incompetent manner; to make a mess of something; to ruin; to bungle; to spoil; to destroy.

   A botched haircut seems to take forever to grow out.

2. To do something without skill, without care, or clumsily.

Translations

to perform (a task) in an unacceptable or incompetent manner

• Bulgarian: извършвам нескопосано (bg) (izvǎršvam neskoposano)
• Dutch: verprutsen (nl)
• Esperanto: fuŝi (eo)
• Finnish: tunaroida (fi)
• French: saccager (fr), rater (fr)
• German: verpfuschen (de), pfuschen (de), (colloquial) vermurksen (de)

• Hungarian: elfuserál (hu), elront (hu), elszúr (hu)
• Jèrriais: bôtchi
• Portuguese: arruinar (pt)
• Russian: запороть (ru) (zaporotʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian: upropastiti (sh)
• Spanish: desbarrar (es), chapucear (es)

to do something without skill, without care, or clumsily

• Bulgarian: скърпвам (bg) (skǎrpvam)
• Czech: fušovat (cs)
• Esperanto: fuŝi (eo)
• Finnish: tunaroida (fi)
• French: bâcler (fr), rater (fr)

• Hungarian: kontárkodik (hu)
• Jèrriais: bôtchi
• Portuguese: sem cuidado (pt), atrapalhar-se (pt)
• Serbo-Croatian: sfušeriti (sh)
• Spanish: desbarrar (es), chapucear (es)

Noun

botch (plural botches)

1. An action, job, or task that has been performed very badly.
2. A ruined, defective, or clumsy piece of work; mess; bungle.
3. A mistake that is very stupid or embarrassing.
4. A messy, disorderly or confusing combination; conglomeration; hodgepodge.

Translations

An action, job, or task that has been performed very badly

• Bulgarian: нескопосана работа (bg) (neskoposana rabota)
• Esperanto: fuŝaĵo (eo)
• German: Pfusch (de) m, (colloquial) Murks (de) m

• Russian: халтура (ru) (xaltura) f
• Spanish: chapucería (es) f, pifia (es)

a ruined, defective, or clumsy piece of work; mess; bungle

• Esperanto: fuŝaĵo (eo)
• German: Pfusch (de) m

• Spanish: chapuza (es) f

a mistake that is very stupid or embarrassing

• Esperanto: fuŝaĵo (eo)

• Spanish: pifia (es)

Related terms

• bodge

See also

• foul up
• mess up
• screw up

Etymology 2

From Anglo-Norman boche, from Late Latin bocia (“boss”).

Noun

botch (plural botches)

1. (obsolete) A tumour or other malignant swelling.
2. A case or outbreak of boils or sores.
   • 1395, John Wycliffe, Bible, Job II:

     Therfor Sathan ȝede out fro the face of the Lord, and smoot Joob with a ful wickid botche fro the sole of the foot til to his top [...].

   • 1611, Bible (Authorized Version), Deuteronomy XXVIII:

     The LORD will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed.