perch

[ purch ]

/ pɜrtʃ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR perch ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

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

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

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

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

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

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

British.

a linear or square rod.
a measure of volume for stone, about 24 cubic feet (0.7 cubic meters).

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

Obsolete. any pole, rod, or the like.

verb (used without object)

to alight or rest upon a perch.

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

verb (used with object)

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

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

Nearby words

perceptive, perceptual, perceptual defence, perceptual mapping, perceval, perch, perchance, perche, percher, percheron, perchery

Origin of perch

1250–1300; Middle English perche < Old French < Latin pertica pole, staff, measuring rod

Related forms

perch·a·ble, adjectiveun·perched, adjective

Definition for perch (2 of 2)

perch

[ purch ]

/ pɜrtʃ /

noun, plural (especially collectively) perch, (especially referring to two or more kinds or species) perch·es.

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

any of various other related, spiny-finned fishes.

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

Origin of perch

1350–1400; Middle English perche < Middle French < Latin perca < Greek pérkē

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for perch

I crossed the room with my rifle up, stood on top of the bed, and from my perch looked down at bin Laden.
I Shot Bin Laden|Elliot Ackerman|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Luckily for Goodell, he'll have plenty of money if he were to be forced off the commissioner's perch.
Roger Goodell’s TV Disaster Shows What’s Wrong With The NFL|Lloyd Grove|September 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Jack Welch, who took over General Electric in 1981, left his perch in 2001, not long after he turned 65.
Don’t Count Rupert Murdoch Out Yet: Why The Magnate Hasn’t Given Up on Time Warner|Daniel Gross|July 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Day after day, Lou sat on the Yankee bench, a perch that increasingly represented his security.
The Stacks: The Day Lou Gehrig Delivered Baseball’s Gettysburg Address|Ray Robinson|July 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Catcoin And so explains the birth of Catcoin, the latest creation hell-bent on knocking its canine counterpart off its perch.
Dogecoin, Coinye, & Catcoin: A Dummy’s Guide to Cryptocurrencies|Charlotte Lytton|January 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Bream Mortimer looked as though he would rather have hopped on to a perch, but he sat down.
The Girl on the Boat|Pelham Grenville Wodehouse
Leslie "came off his perch" instantly and held out his hand repentantly.
Ross Grant Tenderfoot|John Garland
The hound sprang at the top of the wall, at the same time emitting a bark so loud it almost knocked Simon off his perch.
The Saracen: Land of the Infidel|Robert Shea
While they were watching the bird, it suddenly spread its great wings, left its perch and sailed away.
The Island of Yellow Sands|E. C. [Ethel Claire] Brill
The macaws live well in captivity, either chained to a perch or kept in large aviaries in which their strong flight is noticeable.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 2|Various

British Dictionary definitions for perch (1 of 2)

perch

/ (pɜːtʃ) /

noun

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

a similar resting place for a person or thing

another name for rod (def. 7)

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

a pole joining the front and rear axles of a carriage

a frame on which cloth is placed for inspection

obsolete, or dialect a pole

verb

(usually foll by on) to alight, rest, or cause to rest on or as if on a perchthe bird perched on the branch; the cap was perched on his head

(tr) to inspect (cloth) on a perch

Derived Forms

percher, noun

Word Origin for perch

C13 perche stake, from Old French, from Latin pertica long staff

British Dictionary definitions for perch (2 of 2)

perch

/ (pɜːtʃ) /

noun plural perch or perches

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

any of various similar or related fishes

Related forms

Related adjective: percoid

Word Origin for perch

C13: from Old French perche, from Latin perca, from Greek perkē; compare Greek perkos spotted

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012