hatch

¹ American  

[hach] / hætʃ /

verb (used with object)

1. to bring forth (young) from the egg.

   Synonyms:

   brood, incubate

2. to cause young to emerge from (the egg) as by brooding or incubating.

3. to bring forth or produce; devise; invent; contrive; concoct.

   to hatch a scheme.

   Synonyms:

   plot, plan

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verb (used without object)

1. to be hatched.

2. to brood.

noun

1. the act of hatching.

2. something that is hatched, as a brood.

hatch ² American  

[hach] / hætʃ /

noun

1. Nautical.

   1. Also called hatchway. an opening, usually rectangular, in the deck through which passengers can pass, cargo can be loaded or unloaded, etc.

   2. the cover over such an opening.

2. an opening that serves as a doorway or window in the floor or roof of a building.

3. the cover over such an opening.

4. Slang. the throat as used for drinking.

   His usual toast was a muttered “Down the hatch!”

5. Aeronautics. an opening or door in an aircraft.

6. the lower half of a divided door, both parts of which can be opened separately.

7. a small door, grated opening, or serving counter in or attached to the wall of a building, room, etc., as for a merchant's stall.

8. a bin or compartment built into a confined space, especially a deep storage bin.

9. Automotive.

   1. the cargo area in a hatchback.

   2. Also called liftgate. the hinged lid of a hatchback that swings upward to provide access to the cargo area.

10. anything resembling a hatch.

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idioms

1. batten down the / one's hatches,

   1. Nautical. prepare for stormy weather: used as a command.

   2. to prepare to meet an emergency or face a great difficulty.

      The government must batten down its hatches before the election.

hatch ³ American  

[hach] / hætʃ /

verb (used with object)

1. to mark with lines, especially closely set parallel lines, as for shading in drawing or engraving.

2. hachure.

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noun

1. a shading line in drawing or engraving.

hatch ¹ British  

/ hætʃ /

noun

1. a covering for a hatchway

2. 1. short for hatchway

   2. a door in an aircraft or spacecraft

3. Also called: serving hatch. an opening in a wall between a kitchen and a dining area

4. the lower half of a divided door

5. a sluice or sliding gate in a dam, dyke, or weir

6. slang (used as a toast) drink up!

7. 1. below decks

   2. out of sight

   3. brought low; dead

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hatch ² British  

/ hætʃ /

verb

1. to cause (the young of various animals, esp birds) to emerge from the egg or (of young birds, etc) to emerge from the egg

2. to cause (eggs) to break and release the fully developed young or (of eggs) to break and release the young animal within

3. (tr) to contrive or devise (a scheme, plot, etc)

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noun

1. the act or process of hatching

2. a group of newly hatched animals

hatch ³ British  

/ hætʃ /

verb

1. art to mark (a figure, shade, etc) with fine parallel or crossed lines to indicate shading Compare hachure

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hatch ⁴ British  

/ hætʃ /

noun

1. informal short for hatchback

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hatch More Idioms  

1. see batten down the hatches; count one's chickens before they hatch; down the hatch.

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Other Word Forms

• hatchability
  noun
• hatcher
  noun
• hatching
  noun
• unhatchability
  noun
• hatchable
  adjective
• unhatchable
  adjective

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Etymology

Origin of hatch¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English hacchen. hetchen; akin to German hecken “(of birds) to mate, incubate, hatch”

Origin of hatch²

First recorded before 1100; Middle English hacche, hache, hatche “lower half of a divided door, small door, gate,” Old English hæcc, hæc “grating, hatch, half-gate”; akin to Dutch hek “fence, gate, railing”

Origin of hatch³

First recorded in 1470–80; earlier hache, from Middle French hacher “to cut up,” derivative of hache “ax”; see origin at hatchet

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Explanation

A bird such as a hen that sits on eggs to incubate them can be said to hatch the eggs. Then, when the chick emerges from the egg, you can also say it hatched. Humans don't hatch eggs like birds do, but they can still incubate and then hatch a plan, invention, or idea. You may hatch a plan to surprise a friend for her thirtieth birthday party, but to ensure you don't end up with egg on your face, you should verify your friend isn't actually twenty-nine for the third year in a row! As a noun, a hatch is a trapdoor or other opening in the floor, ceiling, or wall that allows access.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hatch

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expects ocean temperatures at hatch time to be just right for newborn turtles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026

The crew will open the hatch and enter the lander, where they will spend two days checking out its systems.

From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026

Let’s jump down this legal escape hatch via a recent experiment conducted at Harvard Business School.

From Slate ● Oct. 25, 2026

The CrossWave’s trap is easily accessed through a hatch in the aft deck—or, it would have been, but for the large icebox strapped to the tubular mounting bracket.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

The fire stick blows another hole in the wall, expanding my broken plank into a true escape hatch.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

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Related Words

• breed
• come up with
• conceive
• concoct
• devise
• dream up
• formulate
• incubate
• invent
• originate
• spawn

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