botch

Contents

EnglishEdit

PronunciationEdit

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /bɒt͡ʃ/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /bɑt͡ʃ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɒtʃ

Etymology 1Edit

From Middle English bocchen (“to mend”), of uncertain origin. Possibly from Old English bōtettan (“to improve; cure; remedy; repair”), or from Middle Dutch botsen, butsen, boetsen (“to repair; patch”), related to beat.

VerbEdit

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.
3. To repair or mend clumsily.

SynonymsEdit

• bodge

TranslationsEdit

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

• Bulgarian: извършвам нескопосано (izvǎršvam neskoposano)
• Dutch: verprutsen (nl)
• Esperanto: fuŝi
• Finnish: tunaroida
• French: saccager (fr), rater (fr)
• German: verpfuschen, pfuschen (de), (colloquial) vermurksen
• Hungarian: elfuserál (hu), elront (hu), elszúr (hu)

• Norman: bôtchi
• Polish: partaczyć (pl) impf, spartaczyć pf, partolić impf, spartolić pf
• Portuguese: arruinar (pt)
• Russian: запороть (ru) (zaporotʹ), испортить (ru) (isportitʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian: upropastiti (sh)
• Spanish: desbarrar (es), chapucear (es)

to do something without skill, without care, or clumsily

• Bulgarian: скърпвам (bg) (skǎrpvam)
• Czech: fušovat
• Esperanto: fuŝi
• Finnish: tunaroida
• French: bâcler (fr), rater (fr)
• Hungarian: kontárkodik (hu)
• Norman: bôtchi

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: slurve

• Portuguese: atrapalhar-se
• Russian: накосячить (ru) (nakosjačitʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian: sfušeriti
• Spanish: desbarrar (es), chapucear (es)

NounEdit

botch (plural botches)

1. An action, job, or task that has been performed very badly.
2. A patch put on, or a part of a garment patched or mended in a clumsy manner.
3. A ruined, defective, or clumsy piece of work; mess; bungle.
   • Shakespeare

     To leave no rubs nor botches in the work.

4. A mistake that is very stupid or embarrassing.
5. A messy, disorderly or confusing combination; conglomeration; hodgepodge.

TranslationsEdit

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

• Bulgarian: нескопосана работа (neskoposana rabota)
• Esperanto: fuŝaĵo
• German: Pfusch (de) m, (colloquial) Murks (de) m
• Italian: pasticcio (it)

• Polish: partanina f, chałtura (pl) f, fuszerka f, amatorszczyzna f
• Russian: халту́ра (ru) f (xaltúra)
• Spanish: chapucería f, pifia (es)

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

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

• Polish: fuszerka f
• Spanish: chapuza (es) f

a mistake that is very stupid or embarrassing

• Esperanto: fuŝaĵo
• Polish: kwiatek (pl) m anim, wielbłąd (pl) m anim

• Spanish: pifia (es)

Related termsEdit

• bodge

See alsoEdit

• foul up
• mess up
• screw up

Etymology 2Edit

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

NounEdit

botch (plural botches)

1. (obsolete) A tumour or other malignant swelling.
   • Milton

     Botches and blains must all his flesh emboss.

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.