botch
PronouncedBAHCH
verbTo do something badly or carelessly and ruin it.
nounA piece of work that has been done very badly.
verbTo repair or fix something in a clumsy way.
nounA very stupid or embarrassing mistake.
Syllables
1 syllable
Letters
Phonics breakdown
Phonics Rule: Letter B
Sound“b”·/b/
The letter B makes the /b/ sound, like in 'bat', 'big', and 'bug'. Both lips press together then release.
B is a voiced bilabial stop — both lips press together and release with voice. It always makes the /b/ sound except when silent at the end of words after m (as in 'lamb' or 'comb').
Tip
B looks like a bat — and bat starts with /b/!
Examples
When the letter O appears in a closed syllable, it usually makes the short O sound “ah”. In American English, this sounds like 'ah'.
Tip
O says “ah” like 'Ahh!' said the doctor.
Examples
Phonics Rule: TCH Trigraph
Sound“ch”·/tʃ/
TCH makes the same sound as CH — “ch”. It comes after a short vowel, like in 'watch' and 'catch'.
TCH appears after a short vowel in a one-syllable word. It makes the same “ch” sound as CH. Think of it as the 'short vowel version' of CH, similar to CK being the short vowel version of K.
Tip
Short vowel? Add a T before CH — catch, match, watch!
Examples
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