perch
1 (pûrch)
[Middle English perche, from Old French, from Latin pertica, stick, pole.]
noun
- A rod or branch serving as a roost for a bird.
- An elevated place for resting or sitting.
- A position that is secure, advantageous, or prominent.
- A pole, stick, or rod.
- Chiefly British
- A linear measure equal to 5.50 yards or 16.5 feet (5.03 meters); a rod.
- One square rod of land.
- A unit of cubic measure used in stonework, usually 16.5 feet by 1.0 foot by 1.5 feet, or 24.75 cubic feet (0.70 cubic meter).
- A frame on which cloth is laid for examination of quality.
verb: perched, perch·ing, perch·es.
intransitive verb
- To alight or rest on a perch; roost: A raven perched high in the pine.
- To stand, sit, or rest on an elevated place or position.
transitive verb
- To place on or as if on a perch: The child perched the glass on the edge of the counter.
- To lay (cloth) on a perch in order to examine it.
perch
2 (pûrch)
[Middle English perche, from Old French, from Latin perca, from Greek perkē.]
noun: pl., perch or perch·es
- Any of various spiny-finned freshwater fishes of the genus Perca, especially either of two edible species, P. flavescens, of North America, and P. fluviatilis, of Europe.
- Any of various similar or related fishes, such as the pike perch or the grouper.
