tench

[ tench ]

/ tɛntʃ /

noun, plural tench·es, (especially collectively) tench.

a freshwater food fish, Tinca tinca, of Europe and Asia that can survive short periods out of water.

Nearby words

tenant-in-chief, tenantry, tenants association, tenants' charter, tencel, tench, tend, tend to, tendance, tendency, tendency tone

Origin of tench

1350–1400; Middle English tenche < Middle French, Old French < Late Latin tinca

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for tench

The Tench, is a great lover of large Red worms first dipt in Tar.
The School of Recreation (1696 edition)|Robert Howlett
Every one has heard of tickling trout: the tench is almost equally amenable to titillation.
The Gamekeeper at Home|Richard Jefferies
But have we no chance of catching any carp, or tench, or perch?
Digby Heathcote|W.H.G. Kingston
Carp and tench are exceedingly shy fish and both prefer muddy and weedy ponds to a clear running stream.
The Sportswoman's Library, v. 2|Various

Here she passed the winter, and cleared the mud of every tench, every leech, and every snail.
Grim: The Story of a Pike|Svend Fleuron

British Dictionary definitions for tench

tench

/ (tɛntʃ) /

noun

a European freshwater cyprinid game fish, Tinca tinca, having a thickset dark greenish body with a barbel at each side of the mouth

Word Origin for tench

C14: from Old French tenche, from Late Latin tinca

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