Showing results for "parched"

• past tense form of parch.
• past participle of parch.

parched

American  

[pahrcht] / pɑrtʃt /

adjective

1. extremely or completely dried, as by heat, sun, or wind.

   Dry shrubs cover parts of this parched valley in the South Hebron Hills.

2. very thirsty.

   After each shift in the ship’s engine room, I was dead tired and totally parched, needing large amounts of water.

3. (of peas, beans, grains, etc.) slightly toasted or roasted.

   The village folk customarily have one meal a day of parched grains, so there is always a crowd around the old widow’s oven.

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verb

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

Other Word Forms

• parchedness
  noun
• unparched
  adjective
• parchedly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of parched

parch ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Explanation

Something parched is excessively dry and hot, in extreme need of water, like a desert, a neglected plant, or your throat after a five-kilometer run. Some foods, like corn, beans, or grains, may be parched, or toasted, to bring out their flavor and help preserve them. American Indians parched corn to make it keep and remain edible over the winter. They taught this to the new colonists, and parched corn later became a staple of explorers like Lewis and Clark, as well as soldiers during the Civil War. Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote of parched corn, "It crackled and crunched, and its taste was sweet and brown."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

parched

The disasters, coming at the peak of the summer vacation period when tourists flock to both countries, were fuelled by woodlands parched to tinder by successive heatwaves and lack of rain since May.

From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026

A spokesperson for the estate said after temperatures exceeded 30C in May, June and July, and with the "exceptionally dry" start to July, the lawn was "parched enough for history to reveal itself once again".

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

AFP reporters saw firefighters battling to douse the flames sweeping across the parched countryside, sending plumes of white smoke into the air.

From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026

ENSENADA, Mexico — In a parched hillside village southeast of Ensenada, where electricity and plumbing are scarce and roaming dogs are plentiful, a treasure can be found on the grounds of an elementary school.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2026

I pictured Mother, tired and parched, drawing back away from the window.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

Related Words

• arid
• scorched
• thirsty
• withered