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Mash

1. A mass of mixed ingredients reduced to a soft pulpy state by beating or pressure; a mass of anything in a soft pulpy state. Specifically, ground or bruised malt, or meal of rye, wheat, corn, or other grain (or a mixture of malt and meal) steeped and stirred in hot water for making the wort.

2. A mixture of meal or bran and water fed to animals.

3. A mess; trouble. Mash tun, a large tub used in making mash and wort.

Origin: akin to g. Meisch, maisch, meische, maische, mash, wash, and prob. To as. Miscian to mix.

to convert into a mash; to reduce to a soft pulpy state by beating or pressure; to bruise; to crush; as, to mash apples in a mill, or potatoes with a pestle. Specifically, to convert, as malt, or malt and meal, into the mash which makes wort. Mashing tub, a tub for making the mash in breweries and distilleries; called also mash tun, and mash vat. Mashed potato. N. The name of a dance, briefly popular in the 1960's. Mashed potatoes n. Pl. Potatoes which have been boiled and mashed to a pulpy consistency, usu. With sparing addition of milk, salt, butter, or other flavoring. It is a popular accompaniment to a meat course [U.S, 1900's], providing bulk and calories to a meal.

Origin: akin to g. Meischen, maischen, to mash, mix, and prob. To mischen, E. Mix.