noun / verb
starch
STARCH/stɑːrtʃ/
A plant carbohydrate used for food and stiffening fabrics.
Potatoes and rice contain starch, a major source of food energy.
Etymology
Middle English sterchen meant “stiffen with starch”; the noun developed from this verb as the name of the flour-based substance used to stiffen or whiten cloth.
In context
discovered potato starch in crevices of 10,900 year old stone tools in Escalante Utah this is uh this is possibly their earliest sign of potato being used as food
More examples
- A little starch thickens the sauce as it heats.
- She starches the shirt collars to keep them crisp.
- A few friendly jokes take the starch out of the ceremony.
Forms
starch · starches · starched · starching
starchy adjective — Containing much starch; stiff or formal.
Similar words
- carbohydrate
- Names a broader nutrient category that includes sugars and starch.
- sizing
- Refers to fabric-stiffening treatments, which need not contain starch.