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definitions

poaching

[poh-ching]
See more synonyms for poaching on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the illegal practice of trespassing on another's property to hunt or steal game without the landowner's permission.
  2. any encroachment on another's property, rights, ideas, or the like.

Origin of poaching

First recorded in 1605–15; poach1 + -ing1
Related formsan·ti·poach·ing, adjective

poach

1
[pohch]
verb (used without object)
  1. to trespass, especially on another's game preserve, in order to steal animals or to hunt.
  2. to take game or fish illegally.
  3. (of land) to become broken up or slushy by being trampled.
  4. (in tennis, squash, handball, etc.) to play a ball hit into the territory of one's partner that is properly the partner's ball to play.
  5. Informal. to cheat in a game or contest.
verb (used with object)
  1. to trespass on (private property), especially in order to hunt or fish.
  2. to steal (game or fish) from another's property.
  3. to take without permission and use as one's own: to poach ideas; a staff poached from other companies.
  4. to break or tear up by trampling.
  5. to mix with water and reduce to a uniform consistency, as clay.

Origin of poach

1
1520–30; earlier: to shove, thrust < Middle French pocher to gouge < Germanic; akin to poke1
Related formspoach·a·ble, adjective

poach

2
[pohch]
verb (used with object)
  1. to cook (eggs, fish, fruits, etc.) in a hot liquid that is kept just below the boiling point.

Origin of poach

2
1350–1400; Middle English poche < Middle French pocher literally, to bag (the yolk inside the white), derivative of poche bag (French poche pocket) < Middle Dutch poke poke2
Related formspoach·a·ble, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for poaching

smuggle, pilfer, intrude, filch, rob, plunder, appropriate, encroach, steal

Examples from the Web for poaching

Contemporary Examples of poaching

Historical Examples of poaching

  • Eggs for poaching should be perfectly fresh, or they will not keep a nice shape.

    The Skilful Cook

    Mary Harrison

  • I took thee for an angler, and thou art but a poaching knave!

    Angling Sketches

    Andrew Lang

  • "Off on one of his poaching expeditions, I suppose," said Bent.

    The Borough Treasurer

    Joseph Smith Fletcher

  • He does a bit of rat-catching, and a bit of mole-catching—and a good deal of poaching.

    The Borough Treasurer

    Joseph Smith Fletcher

  • Na, na, it's no the Waal that's to blame for the poaching and delinquencies on the game.

    St. Ronan's Well

    Sir Walter Scott

British Dictionary definitions for poaching

poach

1
verb
  1. to catch (game, fish, etc) illegally by trespassing on private property
  2. to encroach on or usurp (another person's rights, duties, etc) or steal (an idea, employee, etc)
  3. tennis badminton to take or play (shots that should belong to one's partner)
  4. to break up (land) into wet muddy patches, as by riding over it, or (of land) to become broken up in this way
  5. (intr) (of the feet, shoes, etc) to sink into heavy wet ground

Word Origin for poach

C17: from Old French pocher, of Germanic origin; compare Middle Dutch poken to prod; see poke 1

poach

2
verb
  1. to simmer (eggs, fish, etc) very gently in water, milk, stock, etc

Word Origin for poach

C15: from Old French pochier to enclose in a bag (as the yolks are enclosed by the whites); compare poke ²
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
Word Origin and History for poaching

poach

v.1

"steal game," 1520s, "to push, poke," from Middle French pocher "to thrust, poke," from Old French pochier "poke out, gouge, prod, jab," from a Germanic source (cf. Middle High German puchen "to pound, beat, knock," German pochen, Middle Dutch boken "to beat") related to poke (v.). Sense of "trespass for the sake of stealing" is first attested 1610s, perhaps via notion of "thrusting" oneself onto another's property, or perhaps from French pocher "to pocket" (see poach (v.2)). Related: Poached; poaching.

poach

v.2

"cook in liquid," early 15c., from Old French poché, past participle of pochier (12c.), literally "put into a pocket" (as the white of an egg forms a pocket for the yolk), from poche "bag, pocket," from Frankish *pokka "bag," from Proto-Germanic *puk- (see poke (n.)). Related: Poached; poaching.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper