perch

¹ American  

[purch] / pɜrtʃ /

noun

1. a pole or rod, usually horizontal, serving as a roost for birds.

2. any place or object, as a sill, fence, branch, or twig, for a bird, animal, or person to alight or rest upon.

3. a high or elevated position, resting place, or the like.

4. a small, elevated seat for the driver of any of certain vehicles.

5. a pole connecting the fore and hind running parts of a spring carriage or other vehicle.

6. a post set up as a navigational aid on a navigational hazard or on a buoy.

7. British.

   1. a linear or square rod.

   2. a measure of volume for stone, about 24 cubic feet (0.7 cubic meters).

8. Textiles. an apparatus consisting of two vertical posts and a horizontal roller, used for inspecting cloth after it leaves the loom.

9. Obsolete. any pole, rod, or the like.

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verb (used without object)

perches, present (3rd person singular) perched, past participle, past perching present participle

1. to alight or rest upon a perch.

2. to settle or rest in some elevated position, as if on a perch.

verb (used with object)

perches, present (3rd person singular) perched, past participle, past perching present participle

1. to set or place on or as if on a perch.

2. to inspect (cloth) for defects and blemishes after it has been taken from the loom and placed upon a perch.

perch ² American  

[purch] / pɜrtʃ /

noun

perch, plural perches plural

1. any spiny-finned, freshwater food fish of the genus Perca, as P. flavescens yellow perch, of the U.S., or P. fluviatilis, of Europe.

2. any of various other related, spiny-finned fishes.

3. any of several embioticid fishes, as Hysterocarpus traski tule perch of California.

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perch ¹ British  

/ pɜːtʃ /

noun

1. a pole, branch, or other resting place above ground on which a bird roosts or alights

2. a similar resting place for a person or thing

3. another name for rod

4. a solid measure for stone, usually taken as 198 inches by 18 inches by 12 inches

5. a pole joining the front and rear axles of a carriage

6. a frame on which cloth is placed for inspection

7. obsolete a pole

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verb

1. (usually foll by on) to alight, rest, or cause to rest on or as if on a perch

   the bird perched on the branch

   the cap was perched on his head

2. (tr) to inspect (cloth) on a perch

perch ² British  

/ pɜːtʃ /

noun

1. any freshwater spiny-finned teleost fish of the family Percidae, esp those of the genus Perca, such as P. fluviatilis of Europe and P. flavescens ( yellow perch ) of North America: valued as food and game fishes

2. any of various similar or related fishes

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• percher
  noun
• perchable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• perch
  plural
• perches
  plural

Participles

• perching
  present
• perched
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• perch
  simple
• perches
  simple
• have perched
  perfect
• has perched
  perfect
• am perching
  progressive
• are perching
  progressive
• is perching
  progressive
• have been perching
  perfect progressive
• has been perching
  perfect progressive

Past

• perched
  simple
• had perched
  perfect
• was perching
  progressive
• were perching
  progressive
• had been perching
  perfect progressive

Future

• will perch
  simple
• will have perched
  perfect
• will be perching
  progressive
• will have been perching
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of perch¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English perche, perdge, preche, from Old French, from Latin pertica “pole, staff, measuring rod”

Origin of perch²

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English perche, from Middle French, from Latin perca, from Greek pérkē, feminine of adjective pérkos “having dark spots, spotted, speckled”

Explanation

A perch is a temporary resting place. In the middle of climbing a tree, you might find a good perch on a high branch. Bet some birds will be perching there too. Perch has many different meanings. A bird perch is a little stick it can balance on, and the armrest of the couch can offer you a perch during a party. It's also the name of a kind of fish with spiny fins. And it's also an old measurement of 16.5 feet.

Example Sentences

Later, back at NH Collection Suecia, Hemingway’s old Madrid address and my lucky perch for the week, I detour into the restroom.

From Salon • Jun. 23, 2026

Our research has identified a link between those two developments, which means that trout, bass, perch and whitefish may become less common in unstocked lakes.

From Science Daily • Jun. 21, 2026

You write that she is “helicopter-dumping cash” from her perch as chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, funding things like diabetes research and small-town breakwaters across Maine.

From Slate • Jun. 16, 2026

Together, the three LPs comprise 43 new songs from the Toronto-born rapper and singer who’s been searching for a path back to the pop-cultural perch he occupied for much of the 2010s.

From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2026

A girl with pink hair and heavily lined eyes yells over the noise from her perch on the end of one of the white leather sectionals.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Related Words

• alight
• squat
• touch down