notch
Americannoun
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notches
plural
-
an angular or V -shaped cut, indentation, or slit in an object, surface, or edge.
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a cut or nick made in a stick or other object for record, as in keeping a tally.
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New England and Upstate New York. a deep, narrow opening or pass between mountains; gap; defile.
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Informal. a step, degree, or grade.
This camera is a notch better than the other.
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Metallurgy. a taphole in a blast furnace.
iron notch; cinder notch.
verb (used with object)
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notches,
present (3rd person singular)
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notched,
past participle, past
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notching
present participle
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to cut or make a notch in.
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to record by notches.
He notched each kill on the stick.
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to score, as in a game.
He notched another win.
idioms
noun
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a V-shaped cut or indentation; nick
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a cut or nick made in a tally stick or similar object
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a narrow pass or gorge
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informal a step or level (esp in the phrase a notch above )
verb
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to cut or make a notch in
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to record with or as if with a notch
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informal (usually foll by up) to score or achieve
the team notched up its fourth win
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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notchsimple
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notchessimple
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have notchedperfect
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has notchedperfect
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am notchingprogressive
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are notchingprogressive
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is notchingprogressive
-
have been notchingperfect progressive
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has been notchingperfect progressive
Past
-
notchedsimple
-
had notchedperfect
-
was notchingprogressive
-
were notchingprogressive
-
had been notchingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing notch
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In total, companies in the S&P 500 are expected to notch a 29.5% increase in their earnings, according to FactSet.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 4, 2026
S&P Global Ratings downgraded Oracle’s credit rating to one notch above “junk” territory in July, saying that its “rapidly expanding AI infrastructure business is increasing its overall credit risk.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
This week we learned they have once again taken things up a notch.
From Slate ● Sep. 24, 2026
Perhaps that dialled down the sense of occasion a notch.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Violet had guessed, during her climb, that it had found some notch in the stone, or part of the window, or perhaps a piece of furniture inside the tower room, and stuck there.
From "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snicket
The benchmark Treasury yield notches its biggest decline since June.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 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
We were one week from Christmas if my calculations and tree notches were accurate, and I was wondering how to celebrate it, or if at all.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
The conglomerate’s B shares have notched nine straight days of gains.
From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026
Leaping high, six yards out, to nod in Tommy Conway's cross from the left wing, Will Lankshear notched his ninth goal in 12 games for Middlesbrough.
From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026
AMD notched a $1 trillion market capitalization for the first time, becoming the 14th U.S. company to do so.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
Luis Suarez, meanwhile, boasts the third-highest score ever and, as the Fantasy Football Scout points out, he notched a record 55 attacking returns in 2013-14 despite missing the first five games.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
In each stocking there was a pair of bright red mittens, and there was a long, flat stick of red-and-white-striped peppermint candy, all beautifully notched along each side.
From "Little House in the Big Woods" by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Americans knocked out their quarterfinal opponents 108-56, notching the team’s 34th consecutive win in World Cup play since 2006.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
As he did last week, Springboks wing Cheslin Kolbe took on the kicking duties over fly-half Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, notching up 18 points in a player-of-the-match performance.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2026
Brent crude futures finished the day 3.9% lower at $88.58 a barrel, while the 10-year Treasury yield slipped to 4.638%, notching its largest one-day decline since June 24.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
In terms of average temperatures over that 60-day period, the picture was mixed, he said, with some areas falling in the middle of the pack compared with previous years and others notching notable heat.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026
Images of warriors notching their bows and letting their arrows fly.
From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
