parch
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make extremely, excessively, or completely dry, as heat, sun, and wind do.
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to make dry, hot, or thirsty.
Walking in the sun parched his throat.
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to dry (peas, beans, grain, etc.) by exposure to heat without burning; to toast or roast slightly.
A staple of the Indian diet was parched corn.
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to dry or shrivel with cold.
verb (used without object)
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to suffer from heat, thirst, or need of water.
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to become parched; undergo drying by heat.
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to dry (usually followed byup ).
verb
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to deprive or be deprived of water; dry up
the sun parches the fields
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(tr; usually passive) to make very thirsty
I was parched after the run
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(tr) to roast (corn, etc) lightly
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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parchsimple
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parchessimple
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have parchedperfect
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has parchedperfect
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am parchingprogressive
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are parchingprogressive
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is parchingprogressive
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have been parchingperfect progressive
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has been parchingperfect progressive
Past
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parchedsimple
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had parchedperfect
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was parchingprogressive
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were parchingprogressive
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had been parchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of parch
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English perchen; further origin unknown
Explanation
If you don't water your lawn all summer, the hot weather will parch the grass until it's brown and withered. To parch is to dry up or wither due to sunlight or heat. The verb parch is often used in the context of plants and people. Crops will parch during a drought. A patient's skin will parch during an intense fever. If you're a fan of cooking shows, you may hear the word used in a less dire way. A chef may "parch some corn," which basically means she will roast it lightly. Parch can also mean "to make thirsty," as in "After running a marathon in this heat, you'll feel parched."
Vocabulary lists containing parch
The Birchbark House
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"Ode on a Grecian Urn" by John Keats
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Shabanu
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Parch marks—and their less dramatic form, crop marks—are fairly common clues for archeologists who are working in places with long, dense histories of human habitation.
From The New Yorker • Aug. 5, 2018
Parch this rice in the drippings, stirring constantly until a golden brown.
From Stevenson Memorial Cook Book by Various
Parch, p�rch, v.t. to burn slightly: to scorch.—v.i. to be scorched: to become very dry.—adj.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various
Parch okra seed grind up or beat it up and make coffee.
From Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves Arkansas Narratives, Part 3 by Work Projects Administration
Parch shall these lips of mine, And my tongue shall shrink, and my throat go dry, Ere ever I taste your wine!
From The Glugs of Gosh by Dennis, C. J. (Clarence James)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
