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.

---

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.

---

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

---

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

---

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

See Examples For:

perch perches perched perching

The initiative was included in its new plan for the city's bus stops, which will also see "comfortable seating" replace existing perch seats.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

He reached his longtime perch in the district attorney’s office’s major crimes unit after a lifetime of struggle.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

Wilson remains influential on national defense spending from his senior perch on the Armed Services Committee.

From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026

In 2021, the star staked out an East Coast perch, picking up a Brooklyn waterfront condo in the stunning Quay building, the New York Post reported.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026

I perch on the duct-taped arm of the chair next to him.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

On Centre Court he perches on the public seats on the lookout for any movement.

From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026

Pistachio cold foam now perches atop iced coffees from nationwide chains, Dubai chocolate knock-offs sit at every grocery checkout stand and boutique patisseries fill croissants with pistachio butters and creams.

From Salon ● May 6, 2026

The office used to be one of the few perches prominent enough to attract national attention.

From Slate ● Apr. 6, 2026

Pulling up his laptop, Dallas shows off the art for a single: On a majestic winding Italian road, ian perches pensively on a white moped, in an all-white yacht outfit, barefoot.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2025

Everyone fled to his own sleeping-place.The birds jumped on to their perches, the animals settled down in the straw, and the whole farm was asleep in a moment.

From "Animal Farm: A Fairy Story" by George Orwell

The pie, perched on a table in a room behind council chambers, had one word written on it, in icing, according to two council staffers: Humble.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 10, 2026

"The older generation transfers all the knowledge to us," she said, perched atop precarious scaffolding in the centre of the Bayon temple.

From Barron's ● Nov. 10, 2026

He would often make his way down the corridors of the court building carrying two plastic carrier bags, with a bobble hat perched on his head.

From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2026

“I thought about my mom driving herself to the hospital,” she sang, green felt hat perched on her head, daring us not to turn away.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

It took off at last and perched in a tree.

From "Abel's Island" by William Steig

There was a time, the woman said, when rolling down the road meant perching on her husband’s back seat.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026

“Atlanta” built a Lynchian house for its “Teddy Perkins” episode, perching a namesake character buried under prosthetics within its dim innards.

From Salon ● Jan. 18, 2025

Designed based on perching birds like ravens and crows that frequently switch between air and land, the multifunctional robotic legs allow it to take off autonomously in environments previously inaccessible to winged drones.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 6, 2024

The series began with a goat "perching" on a building in Kew, followed by two elephants reaching their trunks towards each other in Chelsea.

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2024

This Sarai knew from years of perching on sleeping faces, and not from Feral who, though he had begun to shave, could go days between with no one the wiser.

From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• alight
• squat
• touch down

---