Usage Note
Gâcher conveys squandering something valuable — time, an opportunity, a relationship — or ruining something that could have been good. The noun gâchis means a waste or a mess. In a construction context, gâcher du plâtre means to mix plaster, the verb's original concrete sense.
Examples
"Tu vas gâcher ta chance."
Natural Translation
You are going to waste your chance.

Free starter pack
Building your French vocabulary?
Get the 100 most common French words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.
Related Words
Explore French by topic
FrenchNow
5 min read