inch

¹ American  

[inch] / ɪntʃ /

noun

1. a unit of length, 1/12 (0.0833) foot, equivalent to 2.54 centimeters. in.

2. a very small amount of anything; narrow margin.

   to win by an inch;

   to avert disaster by an inch.

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verb (used with or without object)

• inches,
  present (3rd person singular)
• inched,
  past participle,  past
• inching
  present participle

1. to move by inches or small degrees.

   We inched our way along the road.

idioms

1. every inch, in every respect; completely.

   That horse is every inch a thoroughbred.

2. within an inch of, nearly; close to.

   He came within an inch of getting killed in the crash.

3. by inches,

   1. narrowly; by a narrow margin.

      escaped by inches.

   2. Also inch by inch. by small degrees or stages; gradually.

      The miners worked their way through the narrow shaft inch by inch.

inch ² American  

[inch] / ɪntʃ /

noun

Scot.

1. a small island near the seacoast.

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inch ¹ British  

/ ɪntʃ /

noun

1. a unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot or 0.0254 metre

2. meteorol

   1. an amount of precipitation that would cover a surface with water one inch deep

      five inches of rain fell in January

   2. a unit of pressure equal to a mercury column one inch high in a barometer

3. a very small distance, degree, or amount

4. in every way; completely

   he was every inch an aristocrat

5. gradually; little by little

6. very close to

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verb

1. to move or be moved very slowly or in very small steps

   the car inched forward

2. to defeat (someone) by a very small margin

inch ² British  

/ ɪntʃ /

noun

1. a small island

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inch Scientific  

/ ĭnch /

1. A unit of length in the US Customary System equal to 1/12 of a foot (2.54 centimeters).

2. See Table at measurement

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inch More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing inch

• by inches
• every inch
• give an inch
• within an ace (inch) of

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

• inching
  present
• inched
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• inch
  simple
• inches
  simple
• have inched
  perfect
• has inched
  perfect
• am inching
  progressive
• are inching
  progressive
• is inching
  progressive
• have been inching
  perfect progressive
• has been inching
  perfect progressive

Past

• inched
  simple
• had inched
  perfect
• was inching
  progressive
• were inching
  progressive
• had been inching
  perfect progressive

Future

• will inch
  simple
• will have inched
  perfect
• will be inching
  progressive
• will have been inching
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of inch¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English inch(e), unch(e), enche, Old English ynce, from Latin uncia “twelfth part, inch, ounce”; see origin at ounce ¹

Origin of inch²

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Scots Gaelic innse, genitive of innis “island,” Old Irish inis, cognate with Welsh ynys, Breton enez

Explanation

An inch is a small unit of measurement. Twelve inches makes one foot. You might get an inch of your hair cut off, or hem your jeans so they're an inch shorter. Some countries use centimeters and meters as units of measurement, but if you measure in inches, you can order a twelve inch pizza or print out three by five inch photos. When inch is used as a verb, it means "to creep slowly forward." The Old English version was ynce, from the Latin uncia, "a twelfth part."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

inch inches inched inching

Pushing through the glass double doors, I found every inch of the restaurant pulsating with some kind of sensory experience.

From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026

About an inch long, they’re hard to miss — and are known for careening into unsuspecting bystanders.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

Others argued that the shirt is too cheap-looking to be something Chao, who is every inch the wealthy socialite, would wear.

From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026

The snails, which measure no bigger than a third of an inch or 8mm in size, are important as they eat vegetation and enrich the soil.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

She’d changed since my Lincoln simulation and looked every inch the commander in chief in her fitted black uniform.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

Proximity to Lake Michigan creates long, frigid winters with an average of 75 inches of snow.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

The Rhine fell to just 9½ inches at the critical shipping bottleneck of Kaub, Germany, this summer, severely restricting inland freight transport.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

Forecasters warned of life-threatening flooding and mudslides, with as much as 25 inches of rain possible at higher elevations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

The bust is about 22 inches wide, 18 inches high and 10 inches deep, according to the couple.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Five more inches drenched the town that night.

From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney

U.S. natural gas futures inched up with a few more weeks of hot weather-driven demand expected to support power-sector use.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

Economists expect 3.5% annualized growth for the latest quarter, after GDP inched down 0.1% over the first three months of 2026.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

Revenue inched up 1% to $6.91 billion compared to the year-ago period, when Paramount was controlled by media heiress Shari Redstone.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

Deaths were more than double that at 1.6 million, while the fertility rate edged down 0.01 percentage points to 1.14 although marriages inched higher, the Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry numbers showed.

From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026

The guy at the wheel checked his watch, then he gave a nod as the car inched nearer to where I was standing.

From "Firegirl" by Tony Abbott

With them inching closer to the city, Dezhyna and her parents are again thinking about whether they should flee to refuge, far from her beloved Izyum.

From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026

And for maybe the first time in weeks, the Dodgers appear to be inching back to their champion ways.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026

Instead of championing competition and openness, the U.S. is inching toward tech protectionism.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

The latest flare-ups in hostilities are boosting crude futures prices, which were inching toward $80 a barrel Tuesday.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026

The drive back home is slow, as if we are inching our way through muddy dirt roads.

From "American Street" by Ibi Zoboi