starch

American  

[stahrch] / stɑrtʃ /

noun

1. a white, tasteless, solid carbohydrate, (C 6 H 1 0 O5 ) n , occurring in the form of minute granules in the seeds, tubers, and other parts of plants, and forming an important constituent of rice, corn, wheat, beans, potatoes, and many other vegetable foods.

2. a commercial preparation of this substance used to stiffen textile fabrics in laundering.

3. starches, foods rich in natural starch.

4. stiffness or formality, as of manner.

   He is so full of starch he can't relax.

5. Informal. physical or mental energy; vigor.

   Synonyms:

   boldness, stamina, energy

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verb (used with object)

1. to stiffen or treat with starch.

2. to make stiff or rigidly formal (sometimes followed byup ).

starch British  

/ stɑːtʃ /

noun

1. a polysaccharide composed of glucose units that occurs widely in plant tissues in the form of storage granules, consisting of amylose and amylopectin

2. Also called: amylum.  a starch obtained from potatoes and some grain: it is fine white powder that forms a translucent viscous solution on boiling with water and is used to stiffen fabric and in many industrial processes

3. any food containing a large amount of starch, such as rice and potatoes

4. stiff or pompous formality of manner or conduct

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verb

1. (tr) to stiffen with or soak in starch

adjective

1. (of a person) formal; stiff

starch Scientific  

/ stärch /

1. A carbohydrate that is the chief form of stored energy in plants, especially wheat, corn, rice, and potatoes. Starch is a mixture of two different polysaccharides built out of glucose units, and forms a white, tasteless powder when purified. It is an important source of nutrition and is also used to make adhesives, paper, and textiles.

2. Any of various substances, including natural starch, used to stiffen fabrics.

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starch Idioms  

1. see take the starch out of.

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Other Word Forms

• overstarch verb (used with object)
• overstarched adjective
• starcher noun
• starchless adjective
• starchlike adjective
• unstarched adjective

Etymology

Origin of starch

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English (verb) sterchen originally, “to stiffen,” Old English stercean “to make stiff, strengthen,” derivative of stearc “stiff, firm”; cognate with German stärken “to strengthen”; stark

Explanation

Starch is the stuff that makes your shirt collar look crisp and fresh. It's also the complex carbohydrate that potatoes and rice — foods that are called starches — have lots of. Starch can also be a verb. You can starch your shirt by adding starch, which is a white powder, to the rinse water. You can also get the kind of starch that comes as a spray, which you squirt on your shirt while you're ironing it. Cornstarch, which is also a white powder, is used to thicken sauces or make egg whites stand in stiff peaks when you beat them.

Example Sentences

Tapioca pearls are made from cassava starch, and cassava plants are known to absorb lead and other heavy metals from the soil as they grow.

From Science Daily • Mar. 1, 2026

After measuring a sample, staff and volunteers from Ulster Wildlife put the oysters in biodegradable potato starch bags for laying on the seabed.

From BBC • Jan. 9, 2026

My tasting panel dubbed them a superlative Thanksgiving starch.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 15, 2025

But there's also a huge -- if largely unrealised -- potential for their use in bioplastics and biofuels, as well as cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and textiles, thanks to their starch.

From Barron's • Oct. 15, 2025

He was without a jacket but otherwise immaculate for such an ungodly hour: trousers knife-pressed, his white shirt crisp with starch.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

Related Words

• carbohydrate
• sugar