perched

American  

[purcht] / pɜrtʃt /

adjective

1. (of a bird) resting on a perch, such as a branch, telephone wire, or fence, or a rod specially designed for the purpose.

   While hiking I caught sight of a perched owl near the trail.

2. settled or resting in a relatively high position, like a bird on a perch.

   The tour will stop for lunch in a perched village offering a splendid view of the entire French Riviera coastline.

3. Geology. (of a boulder or block) left on the top of a hill, ridge, etc., by ice that melted after carrying it there.

   As you continue hiking southeast, look out for the perched boulder overlooking a pond.

4. Geology.

   1. (of a lake) having a surface level at an unusually high elevation, well above that of aquifers and other bodies of water in the area, because it has formed on a dense, hardened layer of sand mixed with organic matter that traps water on top of it.

      Half of all the world’s known perched lakes are found on Australia’s Fraser Island.

   2. (of an aquifer) occurring above the regional water table, having been formed by an accumulation of groundwater that cannot permeate the underlying layer of clay or other dense soil.

      Perched aquifers are sometimes good water sources, but they tend to be relatively small and easily depleted with overpumping.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of perch.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unperched
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of perched

First recorded in 1815–25; perch ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; perch ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Example Sentences

In the video posted Friday, the two eagles are perched on a high tree branch in an undisclosed location.

From Los Angeles Times • May 31, 2026

The property—which is registered to a trust in Harvey’s name—is described in its listing as a “European-inspired architectural masterpiece” that is perched atop “a private, elevated setting overlooking the Chattahoochee River.”

From MarketWatch • May 19, 2026

"The economy is resilient, but it's also kind of precariously perched," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics.

From Barron's • May 13, 2026

Every student gets a MacBook Air—an upgrade from the midrange laptops given to most Swedish high-schoolers—and lunch is free at a cafeteria perched above a cavernous indoor skate park.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026

But Aunt Kitty sat there perched like a pigeon on a park bench.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Related Words

• alight
• squat
• touch down