starch

[ stahrch ]

/ stɑrtʃ /

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See synonyms for: starch / starched / starching / starchlike on Thesaurus.com

noun

a white, tasteless, solid carbohydrate, (C6H10O5)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.

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

starches, foods rich in natural starch.

stiffness or formality, as of manner: He is so full of starch he can't relax.

Informal. physical or mental energy; vigor.

verb (used with object)

to stiffen or treat with starch.

to make stiff or rigidly formal (sometimes followed by up).

OTHER WORDS FOR starch

5 energy, stamina, boldness.

See synonyms for starch on Thesaurus.com

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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”; see origin at stark

OTHER WORDS FROM starch

starchless, adjectivestarchlike, adjectiveo·ver·starch, verb (used with object)o·ver·starched, adjective

un·starched, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use starch in a sentence

With just-ripe bananas, the starch helps hold the cookies together, and the caramelization will bring out their natural sweetness.
Caramelized banana chocolate chunk cookies are the new best use for the rest of that bunch|Jesse Szewczyk|December 2, 2020|Washington Post
Dig them up before the swamp freezes solid and you can take advantage of this valuable starch source.
13 edible plants you can still find in the winter|By Tim MacWelch/Outdoor Life|December 1, 2020|Popular-Science
Russets, packed with starch and relatively low in moisture, are ideal.
This crisp, classic potato latke recipe delivers a satisfying, celebratory crunch|Olga Massov|November 30, 2020|Washington Post
Add the onion, eggs, flour, potato starch, salt and pepper to the potatoes.
This crisp, classic potato latke recipe delivers a satisfying, celebratory crunch|Olga Massov|November 30, 2020|Washington Post

It does that by binding with a starch, such as flour, so the flour can absorb liquid evenly, thickening the gravy without clumping.
How to make pan gravy with or without meat drippings|Daniela Galarza|November 11, 2020|Washington Post
I asked, as I admired their beautiful silk outfits and their starched white faces and hair sculpted around their pretty faces.
Bar-Hopping With the Kyoto Geisha|Liza Foreman|September 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Whitey was always impeccable, with his jeans starched, the tight leather jacket.
Whitey Bulger’s Women: Inside the Terror and Glamour of His Ex-Girlfriends|T.J. English|June 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The comfort of stretch wool and jersey were lost in the starched silhouettes.
New York Fashion Week: Top-Trends Roundup|Robin Givhan|February 17, 2012|DAILY BEAST
In an era of relaxed dress codes and wash-and-go hair, her style is painstakingly starched from head to toe.
Newt Gingrich's Wife Callista's Prissy Style Problem|Robin Givhan|December 13, 2011|DAILY BEAST
They also seem to take special pleasure in needling the clean-cut, well-starched Romney camp.
Huntsman Girls Go Viral|McKay Coppins|October 28, 2011|DAILY BEAST
The new restrictions on the use of starch will, says Captain Bathurst, affect the wearing of starched garments.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 152, May 16, 1917.|Various
They differed in complexion, some of the newly arrived being delightfully fresh and pink under their starched bandeaux.
Hilda|Sarah Jeanette Duncan
Any starched person would remind him constantly of Maria and her letter and her running away.
The Boy Grew Older|Heywood Broun
Within the most starched cravat there passes a windpipe and weasand, and under the thickliest embroidered waistcoat beats a heart.
Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources|James Wood
They were furrowed with innumerable small wrinkles, and a night-cap with starched strings was knotted tightly under the chin.
Garman and Worse|Alexander Lange Kielland

British Dictionary definitions for starch

starch

/ (stɑːtʃ) /

noun

a polysaccharide composed of glucose units that occurs widely in plant tissues in the form of storage granules, consisting of amylose and amylopectinRelated adjective: amylaceous

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

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

stiff or pompous formality of manner or conduct

verb

(tr) to stiffen with or soak in starch

adjective

(of a person) formal; stiff

Derived forms of starch

starcher, nounstarchlike, adjective

Word Origin for starch

Old English stercan (unattested except by the past participle sterced) to stiffen; related to Old Saxon sterkian, Old High German sterken to strengthen, Dutch sterken; see stark

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

Scientific definitions for starch

starch

[ stärch ]

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.

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with starch

starch

see take the starch out of.

starch

OTHER WORDS FOR starch

Origin of starch

OTHER WORDS FROM starch

Words related to starch

How to use starch in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for starch

Derived forms of starch

Word Origin for starch

Scientific definitions for starch

Other Idioms and Phrases with starch