to put a definite end to; crush; stamp out; foil.
to scotch a rumor; to scotch a plan.
to cut, gash, or score.
to injure so as to make harmless.
to block or prop with a wedge or chock.
a cut, gash, or score.
a block or wedge put under a wheel, barrel, etc., to prevent slipping.
(used outside of Scotland) of Scottish origin; resembling or regarded as characteristic of Scotland or the Scottish people.
Scotch plaid.
Sometimes Offensive. of or relating to Scotland or its inhabitants; Scottish.
(usually lowercase) frugal; provident; thrifty.
(used with a plural verb) the inhabitants of Scotland; the Scots.
(often lowercase) Scotch whisky.
Sometimes Offensive. the English language as spoken in Scotland; Scots.
to put an end to; crush
bad weather scotched our plans
archaic to injure so as to render harmless
obsolete to cut or score
archaic a gash; scratch
a line marked down, as for hopscotch
Also called: Scotch whisky. whisky distilled esp from fermented malted barley and made in Scotland
a type of relatively mild beer
In the north of England and in Scotland, Scotch is not used outside fixed expressions such as Scotch whisky. The use of Scotch for Scots or Scottish is otherwise felt to be incorrect, esp when applied to people
The natives of Scotland refer to themselves as Scots or, in the singular, Scot, Scotsman, or Scotswoman. The related adjectives are Scottish or, less commonly, Scots. Scotch as a noun or adjective is objected to by the Scots except when used of whisky and in established phrases like Scotch egg and Scotch pine. In the United States, Scotch is often used in inforrmal speech and writing where the Scots themselves, or some Americans of Scottish descent, would prefer Scottish or Scots. The term Scotch-Irish is standard in the United States for the descendants of the Scots of Ulster who immigrated to America beginning in the 18th century.
1375–1425; late Middle English scocche (noun and v.), perhaps blend of score and notch (> Anglo-French escocher )
First recorded in 1585–95; syncopated variant of Scottish
Don't get your hopes up: The verb to scotch has nothing to do with the well-known liquor. Instead, it means to prevent or stop something from happening. To scotch is, most often, to prevent plans, efforts, or desires — as opposed to things — from coming about. You wouldn't say, for example, "turning off the flame is one way to scotch the steak." But you might say, "Our plans for spending the weekend camping in the mountains were scotched by the blizzard. No camping for us." Think of scotching as similar to throwing a wrench into someone's plans. Drinking Scotch is one way to scotch your efforts to remain sober.
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“This is great news for our scotch whisky industry, which is worth almost £1bn in exports and supports thousands of jobs across the UK,” said U.K.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
But a provincial official appeared to scotch such suggestions, telling AFP: "There are no security alerts of any kind".
From Barron's ● Mar. 12, 2026
The pairing of Rockwell and Goggins, simply sipping on scotch and chamomile tea as it all unfolded, was stunning to watch.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 16, 2025
The 11 ingredients in the book — beans, calabaza, cassava, chayote, coconut, cornmeal, okra, plantains, rice, salted cod and scotch bonnet peppers — are all inherently Caribbean ingredients.
From Salon ● Sep. 30, 2024
Red Pollard sipped his scotch and reminisced about Seabiscuit and quietly slipped out of history.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
The US had originally imposed a 10% levy on Scotch whisky in April 2025.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
“If Scotland can emphasize very small differences between Speyside and Highlands-style Scotch, what’s more fun than showing off variations between Seattle, Colorado, Texas and Nantucket?”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026
JR: The expansion definitely took a bottle of 18-year-old Scotch and poured soapy water in it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
To avoid the high prices of Scotch bonnets, she also uses locally grown Moruga scorpion peppers, which are native to Trinidad.
From BBC ● May 31, 2026
I remember the Scotch tape ads from the forties: mummify your hand in inside- out Scotch tape, defuzz your clothing.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
Single malts long have been and still are largely used for blended Scotches, which are single malts blended with grain whisky; the pop appeal of single malts is a relatively new phenomenon.
From New York Times ● Apr. 23, 2018
In his excellent guide, “The World Atlas of Whisky,” Dave Broom asserts that in good blended Scotches, grain whisky coaxes out the complexities of a malt by emphasizing secondary characteristics that might otherwise be hidden.
From New York Times ● Mar. 16, 2018
Here is where Canadian whiskey is perched on the shelf next to high-end Japanese labels and Scotches.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 24, 2015
The new liqueurs will have a more limited market than the mixed drinks and Scotches, but will be more profitable.
From Time Magazine Archive
After dinner I bought a yen's worth of cigars and traded the relic of Caligula for as many hot Scotches as they cared to advance on it.
From Literary Lapses by Leacock, Stephen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
