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starch
[ stahrch ]
noun
- a white, tasteless, solid carbohydrate, (C 6 H 1 0 O 5 ) 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.
Synonyms: , ,
verb (used with object)
- to stiffen or treat with starch.
- to make stiff or rigidly formal (sometimes followed by up ).
starch
/ ɑːʃ /
noun
- a polysaccharide composed of glucose units that occurs widely in plant tissues in the form of storage granules, consisting of amylose and amylopectin amylaceous
- Also calledamylum 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
starch
- 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.
Derived Forms
- ˈٲˌ, adjective
- ˈٲ, noun
Other Word Forms
- ٲl adjective
- ٲl adjective
- v·ٲ verb (used with object)
- v·ٲ adjective
- ܲ·ٲ adjective
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of starch1
Idioms and Phrases
see take the starch out of .Example Sentences
That's because once fresh peas are harvested, their sugars immediately turn into starch.
Those factors, however, don’t take away from the starch in the senator’s spine or her willingness to stand up while so many others in her party cower in submission.
The other side of the detective’s profile has him strolling between the starched propriety of upper-class society and the sooty underbelly, doing rich men’s dirty work.
Even many of his supporters expected Lurie, with his starched shirts and monotone voice, to approach the new job as more of a public policy nerd than a cheerleader-in-chief.
No one is legally requiring you to serve a protein, a starch and a vegetable every night.
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Related Words
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.
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