notch

American  

[noch] / nɒtʃ /

noun

• notches
  plural

1. an angular or V -shaped cut, indentation, or slit in an object, surface, or edge.

2. a cut or nick made in a stick or other object for record, as in keeping a tally.

3. New England and Upstate New York. a deep, narrow opening or pass between mountains; gap; defile.

4. Informal. a step, degree, or grade.

   This camera is a notch better than the other.

5. Metallurgy. a taphole in a blast furnace.

   iron notch; cinder notch.

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verb (used with object)

• notches,
  present (3rd person singular)
• notched,
  past participle,  past
• notching
  present participle

1. to cut or make a notch in.

2. to record by notches.

   He notched each kill on the stick.

3. to score, as in a game.

   He notched another win.

idioms

1. notch up / down, to move up or down or increase or decrease by notches or degrees.

   The temperature has notched up another degree.

notch British  

/ nɒtʃ /

noun

1. a V-shaped cut or indentation; nick

2. a cut or nick made in a tally stick or similar object

3. a narrow pass or gorge

4. informal a step or level (esp in the phrase a notch above )

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verb

1. to cut or make a notch in

2. to record with or as if with a notch

3. informal (usually foll by up) to score or achieve

   the team notched up its fourth win

notch More Idioms  

1. see take down a notch.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• notchy
  adjective
• unnotched
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• notches
  plural

Participles

• notching
  present
• notched
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• notch
  simple
• notches
  simple
• have notched
  perfect
• has notched
  perfect
• am notching
  progressive
• are notching
  progressive
• is notching
  progressive
• have been notching
  perfect progressive
• has been notching
  perfect progressive

Past

• notched
  simple
• had notched
  perfect
• was notching
  progressive
• were notching
  progressive
• had been notching
  perfect progressive

Future

• will notch
  simple
• will have notched
  perfect
• will be notching
  progressive
• will have been notching
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of notch

1570–80; a notch (by false division) for an *otch < Old French oche notch

Explanation

A notch is a small cut or nick in something. People make notches to keep track of things. If you've even seen a little U-shaped or V-shaped cut in something, you've seen a notch. In prison, criminals will make notches on the wall to keep track of how long they've been there. If you're stranded on a desert island, you might make notches on a tree. When you make a notch, you're notching. A notch is also part of a mountain range that is lower than the peaks around it — also called a mountain pass.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

notch notches notched notching

Wales and the rest of England should be dry with some sunshine appearing as high pressure crosses, but temperatures will come down a notch.

From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026

Preparing a live lobster might sound intimidating, but it’s a lot easier than you think and will truly take your summer hosting up a notch.

From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026

I’ve liked her in everything but her anachronistic appeal is especially good in movies like “Gail Daughtry” that crank reality up a notch so everything moves fast and silly.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026

By some measures America’s 250th birthday puts a worthy notch in the historic timeline.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026

I pull the electric blanket over me and crank it up a notch.

From "Things Not Seen" by Andrew Clements

In two dozen cases, they were at least three notches higher, the Journal’s analysis shows.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

The authors estimated that private ratings are effectively two to three notches more favorable than public ratings with comparable impairment risk.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 3, 2026

A different condition, abfraction, looks very different – deep wedge-shaped notches near the gumline.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 8, 2026

Four-year notches on a timeline from wide-eyed kid to tuned-in teen and beyond.

From BBC ● Jun. 1, 2026

I’d first noticed these notches the year after Halliday died.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Wisley in Surrey has now notched up 60 days with no recorded rainfall.

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

She was the only woman who has ever been ranked in the world’s overall top 10, and famously notched wins against the leading men, including Garry Kasparov.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

As the extremely dry spell continues across much of England and Wales, a small village in Surrey has notched up 50 consecutive days without rain this summer.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

SpaceX said it notched $14.1 billion in cloud services contracts last quarter and added a $6.7 billion contract in the current quarter with an undisclosed customer.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026

In a glass cabinet against the wall three rows of dentures grinned at her with crooked teeth, overlapping teeth, notched teeth.

From "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin

Americans took out almost $211 billion in auto loans this past spring, notching a new record, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026

The Dow industrials have now climbed for five straight sessions, notching three straight records and a 5.3% gain.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

After opening with a scoreless draw against Cape Verde, the reigning European champions have scored eight goals in the past three games, with Mikel Oyarzabal notching a pair of braces.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026

During the 52-week period that ended on April 25, U.S. sales of nonalcoholic beer, wine and spirits surpassed $1 billion, notching a 16% year-over-year gain over that time, according to Nielsen data provided to MarketWatch.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 3, 2026

Laistrygonian archers assembled on the deck above us, notching arrows in their enormous bows.

From "The Sea of Monsters" by Rick Riordan

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