perch

[ purch ]

/ pɜrtʃ /

SEE 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.

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Origin of perch

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

OTHER WORDS FROM perch

perch·a·ble, adjectiveun·perched, adjective

Definition for perch (2 of 2)

perch²

[ 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. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for perch

The giant vulture—the condor, wheels above all, or perches on the jutting rock.
The Hunters' Feast|Mayne Reid
Sayung buntag nga mauy tinglusad sa manuk, The early morning hours when the chickens come down from their perches.
A Dictionary of Cebuano Visayan|John U. Wolff
At 8-½ miles crossed the outlet of Cayuga, which in breadth was about 70 perches, and more than middle deep to the men.
The Journal of Lieut. John L. Hardenbergh of the Second New York Continental Regiment from May 1 to October 3, 1779, in General Sullivan's Campaign Against the Western Indians|John Leonard Hardenbergh
It perches on a leaf, which the nippers of the mandibles cut half across.
The Life of the Fly|J. Henri Fabre

And now we hear a noisy crow oerhead: he perches upon a neighboring tree in hungry scrutiny.
Pastoral Days|William Hamilton Gibson

British Dictionary definitions for perch (1 of 2)

perch¹

/ (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 of perch

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)

perch²

/ (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

Other words from perch

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

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