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

Digital disaffection has bled into our lives like dye onto white linen, creeping through every inch of the fabric until it’s covered in amorphous patterns of color; some beautiful, some painfully ugly.

From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2026

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

The gondola would occupy only a small slice of the 32-acre space, but it would be a visible distraction from every inch of the park.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 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

Christopher clambered up onto the sill and, inch by inch, lifted the window higher.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

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

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

“What we’re observing is actually tides that are ... 4 to 6 inches above predicted. And that’s quite a bit,” said Jeremy Smith, a coastal engineer with the California Coastal Commission.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 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 shape, “surrounded by a semi-circle of light about eighteen inches in diameter,” formed itself into what looked like a human head.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Revenue in Coty’s prestige business rose 1% to $771.8 million, but inched down 0.5% on a like-for-like basis.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 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

The savings rate inched down to 2.7% in June, marking the lowest level in four years.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 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

"Why are you walking like that, Fati?" her mother asked as Fatima inched her way into her mother's hug.

From "Look Both Ways" by Jason Reynolds

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

We’re inching along the corridor, rubbernecking, unwilling to miss a single link.

From "Linked" by Gordon Korman