starchn.
/stɑːtʃ/, U.S. /stɑrtʃ/ 1.
a. A white powder extracted from plant tissues (traditionally wheat, now chiefly cereal grains and potatoes) by physical processing and used, in the form of a gummy liquid or paste made with water, as a thickening, stiffening, or gluing agent; a type or variety of this. Cf. sense 1b.Starch is used to stiffen linen or cotton fabrics during laundering, to glaze textiles, to size and coat paper, to thicken sauces or soups, and for various similar purposes.Frequently with modifying word, as blue starch, modified starch, rice starch, etc.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > vegetable extracts or preparations > [noun] > starch
starch1440
starch flour1540
stiffing1597
starching1617
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 472 Starche, for kyrcheys, stibium, sersa [read gersa].
?c1450 in G. J. Aungier Hist. & Antiq. Syon Monastery (1840) 367 So that no suster wasche nor touche and [read any] halowed corporas..withe oute lynnen gloues..nor sterche hem but withe sterche made of herbes only.
?a1500 in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 568/48 Brella, sterche.
1531 W. Tyndale Answere Mores Dialoge f. cxij Aboute which was no smal question in oxforde..whether it [sc. the communion wafer] were bred or none: some affirminge yt the floure with longe lyenge in water was turned to starch & had lost his nature.
1583 P. Stubbes Anat. Abuses sig. Dviii A certaine kinde of liquide matter which they call Starch, wherin the deuill hath willed them to wash and diue his ruffes wel.
1612 H. Peacham Gentlemans Exercise i. xxv. 94 With starch thinne laid on, and the skinne well stretched,..prepare your ground or tablet [for a picture].
1645 J. Howell Epistolæ Ho-elianæ i. i. 3 Mistris Turner, the first inventresse of yellow-Starch.
1683 S. Pepys Diary at Tangier in Life (1841) I. 422 Conge..which is like our water-starch.
1713 R. Steele Englishman No. 17. 113 Queen Elizabeth was a mortal Enemy to the Use of blue Starch in making up Linnen.
1764 Coll. Statutes relating to Duties Excise Eng. sig. K4 Marking hairpowder, with any materials but starch, powder of starch, or rice starch, and using, selling, or offering it to sale.
1855 T. F. Hardwich Man. Photogr. Chem. ii. v. 277 The French [photographic papers] are sized with starch.
1893 Laundry Managem. ix. 61 Indian corn or maize is now much used for procuring laundry starches.
1906 H. R. Smith Profitable Stock Feeding 82 Gluten meal is a residue from the manufacture of starch and glucose from corn.
1960 H. Lee To kill Mockingbird ii. xii. 127 She had put so much starch in my dress it came up like a tent when I sat down.
2014 Times of India (Nexis) 1 June In a bucket take about one fourth or a bit more than one fourth of water. Add a big spoonful of starch to water and mix well.
b. Chemistry. The substance which is the chief constituent of starch (sense 1a) and is a carbohydrate consisting of two glucose polymers, amylose and amylopectin.The majority of plants store energy in the form of starch, and hence it is a chief source of energy in the human diet.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > chemistry > organic chemistry > carbohydrates > sugars > polysaccharides > [noun] > starch
starch1779
farina1813
1779 Scots Mag. Oct. 519/2 One pound of potatoes contains three ounces of starch, two ounces of fibrous substance and extractive matter, and eleven ounces of vegetative water.
1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 610 The lime tending to hasten the ripening of the seed, and to convert mucilage into starch.
1849 J. H. Balfour Man. Bot. §17 Starch exists in the form of granules, which are minute cells..in which nutritious matter is stored up.
1870 J. Yeats Nat. Hist. Commerce 139 Starch is turned blue by iodine, an excellent test for detecting its presence in plants.
1955 B. C. L. Kemp Elem. Org. Chem. (new ed.) xv. 209 The most important polysaccharides are starch, cellulose, and dextrin.
2014 A. Roberts Incredible Unlikeliness of Being 224 We have multiple copies of the gene encoding the enzyme amylase, which breaks down starch.
c. Food consisting chiefly of such carbohydrates; a foodstuff of this kind.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > qualities of food > [noun] > food rich in carbohydrate
starch1870
carb1981
1870 Hours at Home May 36/2 All varieties of food may be accurately grouped into four classes... 1. Lean meats and other forms of albumen, animal or vegetable. 2. Starches [etc.].
1933 Washington Post 27 Dec. 11/7 One must..feed the body on a well-balanced diet including plenty of fruits, vegetables, roughage and not too many starches, fatty foods, rich pastries and desserts.
1956 N. Coward Diary 2 Sept. (2000) 332 In the future, when I discover that too much sweets and starch and alcohol are beginning to show, I shall cut them down but not out.
1993 D. J. H. Jones Murder at MLA i. 11 Halleran suffered often from the Irish allegiance to overdone meat and dull starch that he had no choice but to consume in tragic quantities.
2006 New Woman Dec. 156/1 This is a food-combining diet and the basic rule is don't mix starch and protein.
a. A glutinous mass or substance. Obsolete. rare.
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the world > matter > constitution of matter > density or solidity > viscosity > [noun] > viscous substance
paste1390
gummosityc1400
gleimc1440
glaira1529
viscosity1540
plaster1588
emplastic1597
batter1601
starcha1627
mucilage1639
viscus1643
grume1718
syrup1838
sticky1851
goo1903
gloop1927
goop1930
glop1945
ick1947
gunge1969
a1627 J. Fletcher & T. Middleton Nice Valour iii. ii, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Uuu2v/2 I'm but froath;..or come more nearer sir, Y'ave seen a Cluster of Frog-spawns in April, E'ne such a starche am I.
b. English regional (southern). A jellyfish. Also with distinguishing word, as sea starch, yellow starch, etc. Cf. starch-fish n. at Compounds 3. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > subkingdom Metazoa > grade Diploblastica > phylum Coelenterata > [noun] > class Acalepha > member of (jelly-fish)
nettle1601
sea-nettle1601
blubber1602
nettlefish1611
red nettle1611
squalder1659
sea-jellya1682
urticaa1682
carvel1688
sea-qualm1694
sea-bleb1700
acaleph1706
sea-blubber1717
Medusa1752
quarla1820
acalephan1834
medusite1838
jellyfish1841
naked-eyed medusa1848
slobber1849
sea-cross1850
sea-danger1850
sun squall1853
discophore1856
medusoid1856
starch1860
Discophoran1876
jelly1882
sea-blub1885
1860 F. T. Buckland Curiosities Nat. Hist. 2nd Ser. 201 The Folkestone name for them [sc. jellyfish] is ‘slutters’; at Dover they call them ‘water-galls’, and ‘miller's eyes’, and ‘sea starch’; at Portsmouth they are called ‘blubbers’; elsewhere ‘slobs’ and ‘slobbers’.
1875 Once a Week 9 Oct. p. xii/1 The animal..seemed to have been one of those sometimes called ‘yellow-starches’, and, by the Kentish fishermen, ‘sluthers’.
1875 Star (Guernsey) Webb called out that he had been stung on the shoulder by one of the yellow jelly fish, or ‘water-starches’, as they are called.
1887 W. D. Parish & W. F. Shaw Dict. Kentish Dial. Sea starch, jelly-fish. Dover.
1889 Hardwicke's Sci.-gossip 25 71 Wanted, British and foreign sponges... Also starches (genuine), large spines of echinodermata.
3. figurative.
a. Stiffness, esp. with reference to behaviour or writing; (excessive) formality or pomposity; (also) something which imparts this.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > bad behaviour > discourtesy > [noun] > lack of affability
strangenessc1386
unhomelinessc1440
fremdnessa1500
coldness1557
coolnessa1586
self-guarda1586
diskindness1596
formality1599
reservedness1606
inaffability1611
restrainta1616
unconess1637
chillness1639
froideur1645
distance1660
starchedness1670
buckram1682
starchness?1693
starch1694
reserve1711
stiffness1717
unapproachableness1727
retirement1803
angularity1824
standoffishness1826
distancy1836
chill1837
starchiness1844
unapproachability1846
hedgehogginess1858
standoff1865
offishness1867
aloofness1878
pokerishness1880
untouchableness1909
untouchability1919
stuffiness1926
1694 N. H. Ladies Dict. 363/2 There is something..in an ingenious affable deportment, free, and Natural, without starch, and pedantry, that recommends, and endears.
1705 J. Dunton Life & Errors 461 His Language is always Neat and Fine, but unaffected, free from Starch, or Intricacy.
1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 305. ¶14 This Professor is to give the Society their Stiffening, and infuse into their Manners that beautiful Political Starch, which may qualifie them for Levées, Conferences, Visits.
1848 Q. Rev. June 396 He has put a great deal of starch into Cleopatra, who retains under his tuition only a dignified ladylike degree of love.
1876 ‘G. Eliot’ Daniel Deronda I. i. iv. 66 Her quick mind had taken readily that strong starch of unexplained rules and disconnected facts which saves ignorance from any painful sense of limpness.
1965 D. Francis Odds Against xix. 239 The nurse..laughed. A nice girl behind the starch.
1972 C. Weston Poor, Poor Ophelia ii. 9 Some of the starch went out of his voice.
2001 Guardian 14 July (Travel section) 6/2 A stern looking assistant, who had as much starch in her manner as there was in her white coat.
b. colloquial (originally and chiefly U.S.). Pride; courage, nerve; strength, vigour. See also Phrases.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > pride > [noun]
moodinessOE
overmoodOE
prideOE
proudnessOE
moodilaikc1175
wlonknessc1175
wlonkhedea1250
hancenhede1303
stoutness1398
prouda1500
spirit of eminence1595
pridefulnessa1625
stouting1630
starch1859
1859 G. W. Matsell Vocabulum 85 Starch, pride.
1864 ‘Don P. Quærendo Reminisco’ Life in Union Army 71 And so, perhaps, they all concluded they would ‘countermarch’, And, though they should not take the flag, they would not lose their ‘starch’.
1908 Racine (Wisconsin) Daily Jrnl. 20 June 4/2 Doubtless Owen lost his starch pitching to McFarland.
1951 W. R. Burnett Little Men, Big World xv. 197 When he passed on, I lost my starch.
1989 B. Hambly Beauty & Beast 209 She wondered if she would have had the starch to break it off with Tom the following morning, had she reached home safely that night.
2001 J. Kraft Vampire Hound xv. 140 I am so tired, I ain't even got the starch to stay mad at this here thickheaded, spying bear.
2012 Toronto Star (Nexis) 17 July a2 It's the cold water of Lake Ontario that has been known to drain the starch out of many a swimmer.
Phrases
colloquial. to take the starch out of: (a) to make fun of, ridicule; to humble; to humiliate; to deflate; (b) to exhaust utterly; to put out of contention; to beat soundly (also to knock the starch out of). Cf. stuffing n. 2e.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > humility > make humble [verb (transitive)]
edmodienc1175
lowc1175
meekc1175
lessa1382
abatec1390
abasea1393
belowc1400
meekenc1400
disadvance?c1425
simplec1450
lowlyc1485
humilea1492
chasten1526
to pare the nails ofa1549
lessen1579
vail1582
to take (something) a hole lower1591
destate1615
humblea1616
thorough-humblea1617
humiliate1656
level1712
unnichea1751
to level up, down1791
unpedestal1821
to take the starch out of1830
1830 C. Cochrane Jrnl. Tour J. de Vega II. xv. 230 Having regularly taken the starch out of him for his light weight and slim figure, we proceeded to the Oak Inn.
1836 A. Cunningham Lord Roldan II. vi. 171 [He] muttered, ‘Should like to have a cut at the blasted frog-eaters..suspect we should take the starch out of the Mounseers.’
1840 Spirit of Times 25 Apr. 90/1 There is something in training in these parts that will be very apt to ‘take the starch out’ of any ‘conceit’ they may have.
1846 Punch 10 139 The panic has begun to take the starch out of the provisional committee-man.
1870 A. S. Evans Our Sister Republic vi. 170 I would back the National Guard..or the MacMahon Guard..to give odds and knock the starch out of the entire phalanx.
1889 G. B. Shaw in Hawk 13 Aug. 172/1 This is the sort of thing that takes the starch out of the most bumptious critic.
1916 N.Y. Times 14 Sept. 8/1 [He] egged his fast flying hired men onto the..Cincinnati Reds and knocked the starch out of them in two games.
1936 V. W. Brooks Flowering of New Eng. vi. 113 The British reviews were cold and formal... The great Romantic critics had not appeared, to take the starch out of their pompous manners.
1998 E. Kelton Smiling Country iii. 62 ‘You took the starch out of him.’ Hewey said, ‘It took the starch out of me, watchin' him.’
2014 News-Jrnl. (Daytona Beach, Florida) (Nexis) 2 Feb. The Arctic weather was taking the starch out of both teams.
Compounds
C1.
a. General attributive.
starch box n.
ΚΠ
1617 in J. Harland House & Farm Accts. Shuttleworths (1856) I. 213 For the starche boxe vjd.
1874 Sci. Amer. 3 Jan. 8/2 It saves time to have a scoop in every meal tub, flour barrel, sugar pail, and starch box.
1998 E. B. Horne & S. McBeth Essie's Story (1999) ii. 23 Later on in my lifetime, when I saw a sago lily logo on a starch box, my mind went back to that time.
starch content n.
ΚΠ
1893 Exper. Station Rec. (U.S. Dept. Agric.) 4 818 In 1892 potatoes grown with manure had a smaller starch content than those grown without manure.
1996 Health Advisor Dec. 61/1 During the evening eat some nibbles such as peanuts or crisps, the starch content will help soak up the alcohol.
starch molecule n.
ΚΠ
1876 W. G. Valentin in Jrnl. Soc. Arts 24 Mar. 411/1 The French chemist, Musculus.., thought that the starch molecule consisted of C18H30O15.
1934 C. C. Steele Introd. Plant Biochem. iii. ix. 91 Inulin is built up mainly from γ-fructose (or fructofuranose) units in a similar manner to the assemblage of glucose units in the starch molecule.
2001 P. Barham Sci. Cooking ii. 18 The amylose molecules adopt a new helical form in which they are intrinsically bound up with some water molecules. Such a combination of a starch molecule with water molecules is often called a ‘complex’.
starch pan n.
ΚΠ
1504 Will of John Goodyer (P.R.O.: PROB. 11/14) f. 92v A starche panne.
1837 Caledonian Mercury 19 Oct. 1/4 The back room..contains the following articles:—Blue, Green, and Brown Stone Breakfast and Tea Cups and Saucers..Stew and Starch Pans, [etc.]
1922 United Mine Workers Jrnl. 15 May 24/1 It is best to wash out a starch pan as soon as you are through using the starch.
1990 J. Gilge Best of Intentions i. 6 She put the washboard across a tub to hold the starch pan.
starch works n.
ΚΠ
1717 A. Hill Essays Jan. 23 'Tis the Product of Wheat Bran, which yet they may at any Time convince themselves of, by making a Trip to the Starch-Works.
1885 Manch. Examiner 11 June 4/6 A destructive fire occurred..in the starchworks.
1998 Daily Tel. (Sydney) (Nexis) 15 Aug. (Features section) 11 He was born rich but also made his own fortune running a starch works.
b. attributive. With reference to various physical forms or preparations of starch (see sense 1a), as starch liquid, starch powder, etc. See also starch flour n., starch glaze n., starch mucilage n., etc., at Compounds 3.
ΚΠ
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. xxii. xxv. 140 As touching Amylum or starch pouder, it dimmeth the eyesight.
1766 T. Cooper Compend. Midwifery iii. vi. 242 Common Excoriations of the Head or other Parts..will be easily cured by washing with cold Water, and drying them well with a little good Starch-Powder.
1819 A. Schlichtegroll tr. A. Senefelder Compl. Course Lithography 337 Starch-paste, or gum mixed with coarse starch, or fine flour, and with the necessary colour, suits extremely well for all sorts of printing in the tapestry manner.
1835 London Med. Gaz. 31 Oct. 135/2 If you..immerse this tube in water..containing some starch..and connect..the starch liquid with the positive electrode.
1920 Times of India 11 June (Indian Engin. Suppl.) 3 Tallow counteracts the harshness of the yarn produced by dry starch paste.
1978 Burnet County (Texas) Bull. 25 May a4/6 I won't try to stop them from gorging themselves on starch mush.
2002 A. Shaw Portable Ireland 461 Squeeze [the grated potatoes] over a bowl to extract as much of the starch liquid as possible.
2013 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 21 Mar. f10/6 In a laboratory setting, he would have used specialized conservation materials like starch paste..to keep the paint in place.
C2. Objective, instrumental, and limitative.
starch-containing adj.
ΚΠ
1855 P. B. Ayres in Proc. Royal Soc. 7 225 The results of a series of researches of this character on the changes in starch, and starch-containing foods, are presented in this memoir.
1936 W. Stiles Introd. Princ. Plant Physiol. xxii. 472 The statoliths are starch-containing chloroplasts (chlorostatoliths).
2003 C. A. Beebe in M. A. Sperling Type 1 Diabetes xiv. 264 Both amylose and amylopectin are present in various amounts in all starch-containing foods.
starch-free adj.
ΚΠ
1882 Amer. Chem. Jrnl. 4 151 Comparative experiments were also made on the rapidity of starch formation in starch-free leaves.
1939 A. Thirkell Before Lunch iv. 88 Miss Starter is on a diet and has to have a special bread called Kornog, which is practically starch-free.
2010 Globe & Mail (Toronto) (Nexis) 18 Feb. l3 I'm starch-free as much as possible and I keep the fat as low as possible.
starch-maker n.
ΚΠ
1586 R. Young Let. 13 Dec. in State Papers Domest. Elizabeth I (P.R.O.: SP 12/195/58) f. 103 Lettres..concerninge our proceedinges againste the Starchemakers.
a1626 W. Rowley New Wonder (1632) iii. 30 My father was a Starch-maker, and my Mother a Laundresse.
1840 Mag. Sci. 6 June 80/1 The starch-makers place in large vats the wheat roughly ground.
1992 K. Sharpe Personal Rule Charles I (1995) v. 247 In 1637 proceedings in Star Chamber were instituted against the starch-makers for illegally enhancing prices.
starch-making n.
ΚΠ
1608 Proclam. James I against Making of Starch 5 July (single sheet) We do perceiue and foresee, that by the vse of Starch-making, both the scarcitie and dearth of Corne, may be also continued or increased.
?1734 P. Shaw Chem. Lect. x. sig. N7v Those, who are disposed to go upon the Enquiry, may please to compare the Art of Starch-making with that of Malting.
1841 Rep. 10th Meeting Brit. Assoc. Advancem. Sci. 1840 Sci. Reports 64 For starch-making there is only one manufactory [on the Clyde].
1995 L. M. Swinburne in H. Walker Disappearing Foods 199 When wars or agricultural disasters brought desperate shortages of wheat, starch-making was temporarily banned.
starch-producing adj.
ΚΠ
1848 Athenæum 9 Sept. 899/2 It goes somewhat against our spiritual belief..to believe that the ‘divine particle’ in man cannot resist, in the long run, the earthy influences of starch-producing roots taken as a chief article of diet.
1871 C. Kingsley At Last II. xvi. 278 If any one wishes to know more on this matter, let him consult the catalogue of contributions from British Guiana to the London exhibition of 1862; especially the pages..on the starch-producing plants of the West Indies.
2007 Proc. National Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 104 3047/2 Human rain forest dwellers rely very heavily on starch-producing tubers and legumes.
starch-rich adj.
ΚΠ
1903 Med. Chron. 38 270 Substances containing bodies which reduce ammoniacal silver solutions in the cold, as, for instance, starch rich vegetables.
1960 K. Esau Anat. Seed Plants iv. 40 Some ascribe the layering to an alternation of starch-rich and water-rich layers.
2000 Independent (Nexis) 9 Apr. 30 If you're hungry choose a starch-rich evening meal with rice, pasta, potatoes or bread.
starch-sized adj.
ΚΠ
1853 Q. Jrnl. Microsc. Sci. 1 190 A starch-sized being preferable to a gelatine-sized paper.
2012 E. M. Gibbs in A. Feeser et al. Materiality Color xv. 253 The artists employed traditional watercolor painting techniques that stipulated the use of pure transparent colors directly on the starch-sized paper.
C3. † starch root n. Obsolete rare a tuber of cuckoo pint, Arum maculatum, (formerly) used as a source of starch; the plant itself; cf. starchwort n.† starch wench n. Obsolete rare a young woman employed to starch linen.
starch bandage n. Surgery (now historical) a bandage stiffened with starch, used as a splint or cast (also attributive); cf. plaster bandage n. (b) at plaster n. Compounds 2.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical appliances or equipment > surgical supports > [noun] > splint
spelkc1000
splintc1400
shindle1598
splinter1598
junk1617
fish1666
starch bandage1838
starch splint1843
pistol-splint1860
Balkan splint1916
gutter-splint1919
1838 Lancet 10 Feb. 727/2 A complete cure was obtained by the method of Celsus (rubbing together the ends of the bones) and the permanent starch bandage; the latter was allowed to remain on for seventy days.
1895 Catal. Surg. Instruments (Arnold & Sons) 684 Starch Bandage Shears..Starch Bandage Cutter.
2005 S. B. Mostofi Who's Who Orthopedics 221/1 Mathijsen's plaster bandage was constructed after the principles of Seutin's starch bandage.
starch-based adj. having starch (sense 1) as its chief constituent.
ΚΠ
1954 Economist 27 Feb. 625/1 The sealing of cardboard packs is one of the many very large-scale uses of starch-based adhesives.
1983 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 15 Oct. 1141/1 Another starch based mixture, rice powder with electrolytes, is effective for rehydration.
2015 Introd. U.S. Food Syst. iv. 98 Fruits and vegetables are commonly more expensive per calorie than are less nutritious and less protective but more filling starch-based foods.
starch bath n. a bath consisting of starch and water, used in industrial processes or in the medical treatment of skin disorders.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medicines or physic > medicines of specific form > lotion or bath > [noun] > specific
lyea700
eye-water?1593
mouth-water1598
arquebusade1739
eye lotion1797
black wash1805
mouthwash1806
bloodbath1834
starch bath1836
sulphur bath1843
whitewash1897
wax bath1916
1836 Jrnl. Franklin Inst. 17 436 A practical dyer of Troyes, in France, asserts that the acetate of iron is much preferable to the sulphate, in dying blacks. That stuffs which are injured by washing in caustic leys, or even soap, may be cleansed by rubbing in a weak starch bath.
1889 Lancet 19 Oct. 807/2 A starch bath was also given daily.
1996 A. Outwater Water 154 Instead of starch baths, polyvinyl alcohol, carboxymethyl cellulose, and polyacrylic acid baths were used to give the fibers body.
2002 Seminars Oncol. 29 Suppl. No. 10. 5/1 Antihistamines, starch baths, and hormone creams, the usual treatments for pruritis secondary to allergies or infections, offer little relief to PV [= polycythemia vera] patients.
starch blocker n. a substance that (supposedly) prevents the absorption of starch from the intestine or that inhibits the breakdown of starch, used esp. as an aid to weight loss.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medicines or physic > medicines for specific purpose > medicines used to affect nutrition > [noun] > anti-fat preparations
extenuative1818
anti-fat1882
starch blocker1981
orlistat1992
1981 Arizona Med. 38 848/1 A new product has appeared on the market... It is not a drug, but a processed food made from a certain type of bean. It is also called NBE (Northern Bean Extract) or The Starch Blocker.
1983 Daily Tel. 14 Apr. 6/5 Slimmers who use starch blockers..are wasting their money... Experts..say they do not affect the quantity of starch digested and could have unpleasant effects if they did work.
2001 N.Y. Times Mag. 23 Sept. 55/2 (advt.) Known as starch blockers, alpha-glycosidase inhibitors block the action of enzymes in the digestive track that break down carbohydrates into sugar.
starch cellulose n. now disused a water-insoluble carbohydrate identified in the outer layer of a starch grain, later determined to be amylose.
ΚΠ
1852 Pharm. Jrnl. & Trans. 11 326 We may, therefore, divide the mucilaginous and cellular substances into two groups, the one the amylon or starch-group, the other the inulin-group... Group the first includes, 1, starch; 2, starch-cellulose.
1880 C. E. Bessey Bot. §70 From two to six per cent of the whole [starch] grain..bears some resemblance to cellulose; it is distinguished as starch-cellulose.
1916 M. A. Carleton Small Grains i. 13 Chemically, a starch grain is composed of carbohydrates of which there are two forms; (1) the starch-cellulose or outer layer similar to ordinary cellulose, and (2) an inner portion.
1948 W. W. Pigman & R. M. Goepp Chem. Carbohydrates xiv. 565 Many other names for starch fractions are found in the literature. Some approximate equivalents for ‘amylose’ are β-amylose, starch cellulose, and amyloamylose.
starch corn [after post-classical Latin amyleum frumentum (1566 or earlier)] (a) any variety of wheat, barley, or rye having a high content of starch, esp. a starch wheat (cf. amelcorn n. and wheat-starch n. at wheat n. Compounds 1a) (now rare); (b) any variety of maize that is rich in starch or grown for the production of starch (cf. corn starch n. at corn n.1 Compounds 4).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > cereal, corn, or grain > [noun] > wheat > types of wheat grain or plant
spelta1000
farc1420
ador?1440
flaxen wheat?1523
Peak-wheat?1523
red wheat?1523
white wheat?1523
duck-bill wheat1553
zea1562
alica1565
buck1577
amelcorn1578
horse-flower1578
tiphe1578
pollard1580
rivet1580
Saracen's corn1585
French wheat1593
Lammas-wheat1594
starch corn1597
St. Peter's corn1597
frumenty1600
secourgeon1600
polwheat1601
duck-wheat1611
kidneys of wheat1611
ograve wheat1616
soft wheat1640
cone-wheat1677
Lammas1677
Poland wheat1686
Saracen corn1687
pole rivet1707
Smyrna wheat1735
hard wheat1757
hen corn1765
velvet wheat1771
white straw1771
nonpareil1805
thick-set wheat1808
cone1826
farro1828
Polish wheat1832
velvet-ear wheat1837
sarrasin1840
mummy wheat1842
snowdrop1844
Red Fife1857
flint-wheat1859
dinkel1866
thick-set1875
spring1884
macaroni wheat1901
einkorn1904
marquis1906
durum1908
emmer1908
hedgehog wheat1909
speltoid1939
1597 J. Gerard Herball i. 63 Triticum Amyleum. Starche corne.
1747 S. Humphreys tr. N. A. Pluche Spectacle de la Nature (ed. 7) II. xii. 206 Starch Corn, or autumnal Barley, is sown before the winter season.
1759 J. Mills tr. H. L. Duhamel du Monceau Pract. Treat. Husb. iv. v. 476 Amel, or starch-corn was cut on the 28th.
1878 B. H. Paul Payen's Industr. Chem. 777 Spelt wheat... 1. The typical Spelt: Triticum spelta. 2. Starch corn: Triticum amylum. 3. One-grained wheat, Lesser Spelt: Triticum monococcum.
1912 Botan. Gaz. 53 269 The pollen mother cells of nine different races of corn: red starch corn, yellow starch corn, [etc.].
2001 J. White & N. Comninellis Darwin's Demise i. 11 In the case of corn, varieties seem to have arisen over the years, including starch corn, flint corn, sweet corn, pod corn, popcorn, and dent corn.
starch-fish n. English regional (southern) (now historical and rare) a jellyfish (see sense 2b).
ΚΠ
1850 A. Pratt Chapters Common Things Sea-side v. 326 At Dovor they [sc. jelly-fishes] are very generally called Starch-fishes.
1899 Hampshire Tel. 30 Sept. 12/4 One of those horrid bags of jelly—a starch fish—stung the swimmer's shoulder.
1994 L. M. Swinburne in H. Walker Look & Feel 220 Frog-spawn was sometimes called starch because of its resemblance to the gel and starch-fish was an old name for jelly-fish.
starch flour n. powdered starch.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > vegetable extracts or preparations > [noun] > starch
starch1440
starch flour1540
stiffing1597
starching1617
1540 in Hist. MSS Comm.: MSS Duke of Rutland (1905) IV. 301 in Parl. Papers (Cd. 2606) LXIII. 301 Payd for sterche flour, ijd.
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. xviii. vii. 562 Touching Starch-flower called Amylum, it may be made of all kinds of wheat.
1655 Natura Exenterata 304 Take Nettleseed, Linseed, Pyne-aple kernels, Starch flower of either one ounce [etc.].
1796 W. Nisbet Clin. Guide (ed. 2) 291 Dry mealy powders, as starch-flour, barley-meal, &c.
1896 F. W. Kickbusch Let. 22 Oct. in Consular Rep. (U.S. Dept. of State) 560 The separating of the coarser parts takes place, then, by means of hair or wire sieves, of which the meshes are so fine that only the starch flour and very fine fiber parts pass through.
1921 D. H. Lawrence Sea & Sardinia iv. 148 It was a queer little bread—three-cornered, and almost as hard as ships biscuit, made of starch flour.
2010 U. Sill Encounters Quest Christian Womanhood iv. 129 She..handed on practical knowledge, for instance, how to make vinegar or produce starch flour and soap.
starch gel n. a gel made from starch and water; spec. one made using a buffer solution and used in zone electrophoresis; hence starch-gel electrophoresis.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > laboratory analysis > material > [noun] > gel
starch gel1907
spacer gel1964
1907 A. E. Taylor On Fermentation 69 The Mett method, the use of capillary tubes filled with starch gel, is entirely unadapted to studies on the cleavage of starch, since only the liquefaction of starch is measured with this method.
1955 O. Smithies in Biochem. Jrnl. 61 630/1 A starch gel containing the desired buffer is prepared in a suitable plastic tray.
1955 O. Smithies in Biochem. Jrnl. 61 635/1 α1-Globulin does not appear as a definite band between α2-globulin and albumin in starch gel electrophoresis.
1978 Jrnl. Royal Soc. Med. 71 192 Investigations into this isoenzyme composition of the circulating CK using starch-gel electrophoresis.
2013 Carbohydrate Polymers 95 174/2 Interaction between amylose and amylopectin has also been shown to affect the properties of starch gels.
starch glaze n. (a) (now rare) a substance used to simultaneously starch and add a gloss to laundry, typically consisting of borax or stearic acid mixed with starch; (in early use also) a substance used to produce a glossy surface on starched laundry; (b) a glaze made of starch and water for producing a glossy surface on items of food, typically baked goods.In sense (a) frequently occurring in brand names.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > cleaning > washing > washing agents > [noun] > preparations for washing clothes > starching preparations
conjee1698
starch glaze1854
1854 Monthly Jrnl. Progress Apr. i. 117 Some time since, a substance came into use, in small cakes, under the name of American ‘Starch Glaze’, which appears to have been nothing more than stearic acid.
1880 Pharmaceut. Jrnl. & Trans. 5 June 991/1 I should be much obliged if..anyone will furnish me a good formula for starch glaze, combining stiffness and gloss, so essential in laundry work.
1909 Weekly Irish Times 15 May 15/5 (advt.) The whole secret of easy and successful ironing lies in the use of borax starch glaze.
1958 Official Gaz. (U.S. Patent Office) 25 Nov. 922/1 The sugar and precooked starch glaze substantially remains in place on the food while it is heated and cooked.
2004 M. Glezer Blessing of Bread 50 For some breads, such as a sourdough rye, a starch glaze made from potato or cornstarch is more appropriate than an egg glaze.
starch grain n. †(a) (perhaps) the dryness and granularity characteristic of starch (obsolete rare); (b) a small, variably shaped, lamellated body consisting of starch, lipids, and proteins, found in the plastids and cytoplasm of plant cells (cf. slightly earlier starch granule n.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > chemistry > organic chemistry > carbohydrates > sugars > polysaccharides > [noun] > starch > grains or granules of
starch grain1677
starch granule1834
1677 R. Plot Nat. Hist. Oxford-shire ix. 281 But if intended to be sold as starch, they then use a stove to give it the starch-grain, which the oven will not do.
1849 J. H. Balfour Man. Bot. 8 Cell of Potato, containing striated starch grains.
2014 New Scientist 12 July 57/1 Right after baking, the starch grains in the dough still contain significant stores of water.
starch granule n. [probably after French grain de fécule (1804 or earlier)] = starch grain n. (b).
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > chemistry > organic chemistry > carbohydrates > sugars > polysaccharides > [noun] > starch > grains or granules of
starch grain1677
starch granule1834
1834 Edinb. Med. & Surg. Jrnl. 42 446 He [sc. M. Raspail] maintains, for instance, that iodine..merely colours it [sc. starch]..and that this coloration depends on the action of iodine, not on the starch granule, but on its perisperm or integument.
1913 Sat. Evening Post (Philadelphia) 22 Feb. 32/1 (advt.) Each grain of wheat or rice contains at least 125,000,000 starch granules.
2011 Fortean Times Mar. 41/3 Starch granules from plant food trapped in the dental calculus on Neanderthal teeth from 40,000 BP..suggested they ate a wide variety of plants.
starch gum n. = dextrin n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > chemistry > organic chemistry > carbohydrates > sugars > polysaccharides > [noun] > starch > derivatives of
British gum1818
tragacanthin1820
hordein1823
starch gum1835
traganthin1862
hydrol1926
1835 W. Black Pract. Treat. Brewing 143 To the internal contents of these granules, M. Biot gave the name dextrin; it might also be called starch-gum, because in its properties it is quite analagous with the latter.
1843 J. Pereira Lect. Polarized Light iv. 102 The substance called dextrine is starch-gum.
1922 J. J. Sudborough Bernthsen's Text-bk. Org. Chem. (new ed.) xiv. 339 Dextrine, or starch gum, is a comprehensive name applied to intermediate products obtained in the transformation of starch into maltose and d-glucose.
2001 H. Warson & C. A. Finch Applic. Synthetic Resin Latices I. viii. 488 Typically, vinyl acetate monomer (175 g) has been polymerised in a solution of starch gum (50 g) in water (250 g) to form a latex (43 % of solids).
starch hyacinth n. now rare a grape hyacinth, probably Muscari neglectum. [Apparently so called because of the scent of its flowers; compare quot. 1790, although compare also quot. 2006 for a different view.]
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > particular flower or plant esteemed for flower > [noun] > lily and allied flowers > hyacinth and allied flowers > grape-hyacinth or tassel-hyacinth
fair-haired hyacinth1597
grape-flower1597
muscari1597
pearls of Spain1597
musk grape-flower1598
musk-grape1607
musk hyacinth1629
purple-tassels1629
purse tassel1629
grape hyacinth1733
musk1786
starch hyacinth1790
tassel hyacinth1790
1790 Bot. Mag. 4 122 We have thought it better to call this species the Starch Hyacinth, the smell of the flower in the general opinion resembling that substance.
1808 J. E. Smith Eng. Bot. XXVII. 1931 Starch Hyacinth..is so abundantly wild in many places.
1900 G. Bell Let. 11 Jan. (1927) I. v. 61 I went there yesterday afternoon for starch hyacinths and cyclamen and had a tremendous scramble.
2006 Abbotsford (Brit. Columbia) Times (Nexis) 26 Sept. 20 This is true of Muscari neglectum, sometimes called the Starch Hyacinth because each of the lower navy blue florets has a crisp white rim.
starch iodide n. a dark-blue soluble complex formed by the reaction of iodine and starch.
ΚΠ
1861 Sci. Amer. 9 Feb. 87/3 By bringing a starch iodide into contact with yeast, it is deprived of its blue color, and becomes sweet, gummy, and very soluble in water.
1878 W. de W. Abney Treat. Photogr. xxi. 151 A dark blue colour due to starch iodide.
1911 Bot. Gaz. 51 123 When wheat seedlings are placed in dilute solution of blue starch iodide with seeds and roots in the solution, the blue color is soon discharged.
1982 Brit. Med. Jrnl. (Clin. Res. ed.) 19 June 1835/1 The iodine in the scrub combines with the starch to form blue-black starch iodide.
2008 Fisheries Res. 90 88/1 The lobsters were swab tested using the starch-iodide solution (including the control) to test for the presence of bleach.
starch jelly n. a paste or gel of starch and water; cf. starch mucilage n.In early use chiefly in medical contexts.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medicines or physic > medicines of specific form > ointments, etc. > [noun] > paste (external) > specific paste
starch jelly1764
starch mucilage1801
Vienna caustic1835
guarana-paste1838
Vienna paste1840
1764 Mod. Pract. London Hospitals 151 Starch Glyster. Dissolve a quarter of an ounce of extract of logwood, in six ounces of starch jelly.
1821 T. Purton App. Midland Flora i. 284 On its first appearance, the fluid is of the colour and consistence of starch jelly.
1899 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. VIII. 520 Starch jelly is used for similar purposes.
1936 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 31 Oct. 856/1 Starch jelly is best applied to a body fold enclosed in a single layer of gauze instead of spreading it on a backing of linen.
1999 N. Kasai & S. Natsagdorj in M. S. Asimov & C. E. Bosworth Hist. Civilizations Central Asia xix. 384 The Saffarid ruler of Sistan, Yacqūb b. Layth, ate plain, ordinary food, mostly barley bread, leeks, onions, fish and a little rice with a sort of cream or starch jelly.
2011 N.Z. Herald (Nexis) 13 Aug. (Entertainment section) Small bowls of tasty morsels, such as sticky sweet soy beans, cubes of chestnut starch jelly dressed with soy and ginger.., and hundreds of other combinations.
starch man n. now rare a person (esp. a man) who makes or sells starch.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > worker > workers according to type of work > manual or industrial worker > producer > makers of other manufactured materials > [noun] > of other materials
mortar-maker1359
wax-maker1515
petre man1594
saltpetre-maker1611
starch man1699
varnish-maker1753
icemaker1775
kelper1808
black lead maker1813
bone man1834
kelp-burner1845
black-salter1866
1699 A. Boyer Royal Dict. Amidonnier,..a Starch-man.
1884 Columbus (Indiana) Herald 24 June The starchmen of the West, in connection with starchmen of Buffalo, N. Y. will meet in convention at Indianapolis to-day.
1919 Eastern Commerce Oct. 5/1 Particularly bean exporters, starch men,..and others who are interested in those countries have been alarmed by the tendency in the European trade.
1991 Tappi Jrnl. July 140/2 The system relies on the skills of the starch man and the precision of his tools.
starch mucilage n. a gel made of starch and water, used esp. as a medium for administering drugs.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medicines or physic > medicines of specific form > ointments, etc. > [noun] > paste (external) > specific paste
starch jelly1764
starch mucilage1801
Vienna caustic1835
guarana-paste1838
Vienna paste1840
1801 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 6 432 Opium was likewise administered, clyster-wise, in starch mucilage.
1922 Jrnl. Amer. Vet. Med. Assoc. 62 35 A gelatin or starch mucilage containing 0.1 per cent of acriflavine is extensively used.
2008 Powder Technol. 185 280 The surface tension of the starch mucilage also varied significantly with Bitter yam having the lowest..and Round leaf yellow yam the highest.
starch-reduced adj. processed so as to contain less than the normal amount of starch.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > qualities of food > [adjective] > starchy or low starch
starchy1848
starch-reduced1919
1919 Times 1 Mar. 2/1 (advt.) Energen Foods, starch-reduced, protein increased, well-balanced, nutritious and palatable,..can be obtained from leading Chemists and Stores.
1939 A. Thirkell Before Lunch iv. 89 Pepso is only starch-reduced.
1972 ‘G. North’ Sgt. Cluff rings True ix. 76 Sugar substitutes, starch-reduced biscuits and breads, low-calorie soups.
2006 M. E. J. Lean Fox & Cameron's Food Sci., Nutrition & Health (ed. 7) xvii. 262/1 Such products include sugar substitutes, low-energy drinks and soups, low-energy salad dressings and fats, starch-reduced breads and rolls.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Araceae (wake-robin and allies) > [noun]
dragonsc1000
cuckoo-pintlea1400
yekestersea1400
aaron?c1425
calf's-footc1450
cuckoo-spitc1450
rampa1500
priest's hood1526
wake-robin1530
green dragon1538
arum1551
cuckoo-pint1551
dragonwort1565
priest's pintle1578
tarragon1591
starch root1596
friar's cowl1597
friar's-hood1597
starchwort1597
dragon serpentine1598
dragon's-herb1600
small dragonwort1674
dumb cane1696
skunk weed1735
polecat weed1743
lords and ladies1755
mucka-mucka1769
skunk cabbage1778
bloody man's finger1787
green dragon1789
swamp-cabbage1792
priest in the pulpit1837
orontiad1846
arad1853
cows and calves1853
bulls and cows1863
skunk cabbage1869
aroid1876
Adam and Eve1877
stallion1878
cunjevoi1889
1596 H. Plat Sundrie New & Artificiall Remedies Famine sig. B.2 How to make an excellent bread of the rootes of Aaron called cuckowpit, or starch rootes.
1853 T. B. Groves in Pharmaceut. Jrnl. & Trans. Aug. 60 The Arum maculatum is commonly called arrow-root or starch-root.
starch-ruffed adj. that wears a starched ruff.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > wearing clothing > [adjective] > wearing neckwear
collaredc1405
barbeda1529
ruffed1548
wimpled1579
quilled-up1694
starch-ruffed1783
cravatted1801
neckclothed1825
bandanaed1831
boa'd1831
black-tied1848
mufflered1859
white-collared1860
chokered1865
comfortered1880
tied1911
1783 G. Colman in W. Cooke Capricious Lady Epil. The starch ruff'd Maidens of Queen Bess's reign.
1855 H. W. Herbert Mem. Henry VIII (1856) ii. 90 The sight of the black-garbed, starch-ruffed, stately, unbending cavaliers.
2008 Christmas in Amsterdam in www.travelswithtwo.com 16 Dec. (O.E.D. Archive) This is a great place to..find out who all those starch-ruffed aristocrats are that the Masters were always painting.
starch splint n. Surgery (now historical and rare) a splint made from a starch bandage.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > medical appliances or equipment > surgical supports > [noun] > splint
spelkc1000
splintc1400
shindle1598
splinter1598
junk1617
fish1666
starch bandage1838
starch splint1843
pistol-splint1860
Balkan splint1916
gutter-splint1919
1843 London Med. Gaz. 1 Dec. 277/1 I gave exit to the matter, and fixed the starch-splint to favour anchylosis.
1869 B. Hill Essent. Bandaging iii. 85 In six weeks the starch splint may usually be discarded.
1912 Internat. Jrnl. Surg. 25 215/2 I have had little experience with silica or starch splints, but believe them inferior to plaster-of-Paris.
2013 R. A. Gabriel Between Flesh & Steel v. 142 He [sc. Napoleon's chief surgeon] used the starch splint to reduce the pain that casualties suffered during transport.
starch sugar n. sugar extracted from starch, typically by treatment with sulphuric acid; = dextrose n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > additive > sweetener > [noun] > sugar > dextrose or glucose
starch sugar1815
grape-sugar1829
glucose1838
dextrose1866
the world > matter > chemistry > organic chemistry > carbohydrates > sugars > monosaccharides > [noun] > by number of carbon atoms > having 6 carbon atoms > dextrose
starch sugar1815
grape-sugar1829
dextrose1866
1815 tr. T. de Saussure in Ann. Philos. 6 428 The result of this analysis of sugar of grapes does not differ farther from that of starch sugar [Ger. Stärkenzucker, Fr. sucre d'amidon], than is usual in two different experiments upon the combustion of the same body.
1844 R. D. Hoblyn Dict. Terms Med. & Collateral Sci. (ed. 2) Glucose, another name for starch sugar, diabetic sugar, or the sugar of fruits.
1920 F. C. Bicknell tr. J.-H. Fabre Secret of Everyday Things l. 272 The starch is boiled in water and, while it is boiling, there is added a small quantity of a powerful liquid called oil of vitriol or sulphuric acid... The substance thus obtained is soft, sticky, and nearly as sweet as honey; it is called starch-sugar, or glucose.
1990 H. Benninga Hist. Lactic Acid Making i. 13 Large scale efforts were then made in Prussia and France to replace cane sugar by beet sugar and starch sugar.
2007 S. S. DeFauw in A. F. Smith Oxf. Compan. Amer. Food & Drink 170/1 In the refining of cornstarch, a chemical breakdown by heat, acid, enzymes, or any combination of the three results in dextrose or starch sugar.
starch syrup n. a syrup of sugar and water formed by the treatment of starch; cf. starch sugar n.
ΚΠ
1811 Retrospect Philos., Mech., Chem. & Agric. Discov. 7 138 The most highly saccharine starch-syrup, slowly stoved in tin plate moulds, gave a perfectly transparent elastic matter, like the paste of jujubes, which attracted moisture from the air.
1882 C. G. W. Lock et al. Sugar Growing & Refining xviii. 467 If starch syrup is long kept at a temperature near its boiling-point, it assumes a darker colour and becomes sweeter.
1946 S. Jordan & K. E. Langwill Confectionery Anal. & Composition iii. 9 Pure sugar (sucrose) or its hydrolytic products (dextrose and levulose) have been partially replaced by a low, medium or highly converted corn syrup (starch syrup, glucose).
2015 Japan News (Nexis) 2 June (D&D section) 12 The extract is boiled for eight to 10 hours until it is reduced to transparent starch syrup at the bottom of the pot.
starch water n. a solution of starch in water.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > vegetable extracts or preparations > [noun] > starch > solution with water
starch water1705
1705 tr. Whole Art of Dying ii. 50 Hang over the Fire an equal quantity of Starch Water, and Rain Water.
1762 J. Hunter in W. Hunter Med. Comm. i. v. 46 The intestine was filled with starch-water and indigo.
1825 ‘J. Nicholson’ Operative Mechanic 347 This reel is sometimes placed..in a tub containing starch-water.
1920 L. R. Balderston Home Laundering (U.S. Dept. Agric. Farmers' Bull. No. 1099) 28 When the action of soap is likely to injure a delicate color, soap-bark, starch water, or bran water may be used instead.
1995 H. Dunmore Spell of Winter (1996) xxi. 238 His eyes were the palest blue, like starch-water.
2014 Indian Express (Nexis) 2 Oct. Sometimes her diet would not be sufficient, as we wouldn't have enough food, so she would drink the starch water from the rice made that day.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > cleaning > washing > washing clothes and textile articles > [noun] > starching > starcher
starcher?1518
starch wench1626
clear-starcher1709
1626 N. Breton Figure of Foure: 2nd Pt. sig. A8v A needle wench, and a starch wench.
starch wheat n. any type or variety of wheat that is rich in starch; esp. either of the primitive wheats emmer and spelt; cf. starch corn (a).
ΚΠ
1789 World 23 June Starch Wheat 42s. a 48 bl.
1800 London Chron. 8 Mar. 229/3 (table) Current Price of Grain as under: Starch Wheat.
1844 Jrnl. Agric. & Hort. Soc. India 3 88 The starch wheat and the Hopetown white had also deteriorated.
1941 Jrnl. Egyptian Archaeol. 27 28 It seems that the ‘spelt’ so prominent in the Ramesside age and later was of the kind known scientifically as Triticum diccoccum or ‘starch-wheat’, a poor kind of cereal.
2014 D. Bissonnette It's All about Nutrition ii. 18/2 Emmer wheat, known also as two grained spelt or starch wheat, was first cultivated in Palestine, Syria, and Asia Minor.
starchwoman n. now historical a woman who sells starch or starches linen.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > selling > seller > sellers of specific things > [noun] > sellers of other specific things
soaper?c1225
oilman1275
smear-monger1297
upholder1333
basket-seller?1518
broom-seller?1518
upholster1554
rod-woman1602
starchwoman1604
pin manc1680
colour seller1685
potato-woman1697
printseller1700
rag-seller1700
Greenwich barber1785
sandboy1821
iceman1834
umbrella man1851
fly-boy1861
snuff-boxera1871
pedlar1872
snake-boy1873
bric-a-brac man1876
tinwoman1884
resurrectionist1888
butch1891
paanwallah1955
1604 T. Middleton Ant & Nightingale sig. E4 Trulls passing too and fro in the wash-shape of Laundresses, as your Bawdes about London in the manner of Starch-women.
1901 Jrnl. Polit. Econ. 9 585 Incidental references scattered through Elizabethan literature show that the starchwomen were a numerous class.
2011 N. Korda Labors Lost iii. 141 The wooden stand on which starchwomen set ruffs and the lines on which they hung them to dry.
starchwort n. now historical and rare cuckoo pint, Arum maculatum; cf. starch root n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Araceae (wake-robin and allies) > [noun]
dragonsc1000
cuckoo-pintlea1400
yekestersea1400
aaron?c1425
calf's-footc1450
cuckoo-spitc1450
rampa1500
priest's hood1526
wake-robin1530
green dragon1538
arum1551
cuckoo-pint1551
dragonwort1565
priest's pintle1578
tarragon1591
starch root1596
friar's cowl1597
friar's-hood1597
starchwort1597
dragon serpentine1598
dragon's-herb1600
small dragonwort1674
dumb cane1696
skunk weed1735
polecat weed1743
lords and ladies1755
mucka-mucka1769
skunk cabbage1778
bloody man's finger1787
green dragon1789
swamp-cabbage1792
priest in the pulpit1837
orontiad1846
arad1853
cows and calves1853
bulls and cows1863
skunk cabbage1869
aroid1876
Adam and Eve1877
stallion1878
cunjevoi1889
1597 J. Gerard Herball ii. 685 The common Cockow pint is called in Latin Arum:..in English Cockow pint,..and of some Starch woort.
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. II. 1092/2 Starchwort, Arum maculatum.
1996 R. Mabey Flora Britannica 8/2 Starchwort, for example, recalls the era when the dried and ground-up tubers were used as a substitute for starch in laundries.
starch yard n. now historical a yard where grain is made into starch.
ΚΠ
1701 Flying Post 5 Apr. There's a new Starch-Yard erected in Tuttle-Fields, Westminster,..where those that have occasion may be furnish'd with Starch at reasonable Rates.
1794 W. James & J. Malcolm Gen. View Agric. Surrey 34 There are..great numbers [of hogs] fed in the starch yards.
1868 Freeman's Jrnl. (Dublin) 23 Oct. Many samples offering in our market are..worthless for flour, and only fit for the starch-yard.
1905 Eng. Mechanic 9 June 407/2 I..had the free run of chemical works and starch yards.
1952 Econ. Hist. Rev. 5 254 The starch yards..were under the disadvantage of having to use a proportion of beans and pease [for fodder] in addition to their offals.
Derivatives
ˈstarchlike adj.
ΚΠ
1759 W. Hillary Observ. Changes Air & Dis. Barbados 79 Their Blood..when it stood till cold, was covered with a thin Starch-like Pellicle.
1807 Agric. Mag. Sept. (1808) 179 In half an hour it will boil away into a starch-like liquid.
1929 Pop. Sci. Monthly Feb. 74/3 Inulin, a starchlike substance found in dahlia juice.
2011 N.Y. Times Mag. 20 Feb. 16/2 The rash is thought to be a toxic reaction to a starchlike component of the shiitake mushroom.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2016; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
starchadj.
/stɑːtʃ/, U.S. /stɑrtʃ/ Now rare.
Of a person, a person's demeanour or behaviour, etc.: stiff, unbending; formal; prim; = starchy adj. 2.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > bad behaviour > discourtesy > [adjective] > not affable
strange1338
estrangec1374
formal?1518
cold1557
squeamish1561
icy1567
buckrama1589
repulsive1598
starched1600
unaffable1603
stiff1608
withdrawing1611
reserved1612
aloof1639
cool1641
uncordial1643
inaffable1656
staunch1659
standfra1683
distant1710
starcha1716
distancing1749
pokerish1779
buckramed1793
angular1808
easeless1811
touch-me-not1817
starchy1824
standoffish1826
offish1827
poker-backed1830
standoff1837
stiffish1840
chilly1841
unapproachable1848
hedgehoggy1866
sticky1882
hard-to-get1899
stand-away1938
princesse lointaine1957
a1716 J. Killingbeck 18 Serm. (1717) xi. 230 'Tis but misrepresenting Sobriety as a Starch and Formal, and Vertue as a Laborious and Slavish thing.
a1721 J. Sheffield Wks. (1723) I. 198 Then Ph——ps came forth, as starch as a Quaker, Whose simple Profession's a Pastoral-maker.
1721 A. Ramsay Tartana 249 Lest, O fair nymphs, you should our patience tire, And starch reserve extinguish generous fire.
1780 H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Painting (ed. 2) IV. i. 1 Holbein and the Flemish masters, who..saw nothing but the starch and unpliant habits of the times.
1809 B. H. Malkin tr. A. R. Le Sage Adventures Gil Blas II. vi. i. 431 A man who puts on all the starch formalities of an inveterate religionist.
1837 B. Disraeli Venetia I. 116 His housekeeper,..as precise and starch as an old picture.
1880 J. H. Ingraham Not ‘A Fool's Errand’ xlvii. 364 A certain very precise, very starch, very ancient old lady aunt.
1908 J. R. Randall Maryland, my Maryland 129 I'll..live to see you an old maid! A starch old maid with snuff and chat.
1916 A. Lowell Men, Women & Ghosts 235 Tommy's soldiers, stiff and starch, Boldly stepping to the rattle Of the drums.
2001 A. Ward & J. Williams in J. Williams et al. Passing Rhythms iii. 56 Unlike his starch, be-suited contemporaries, Chapman..was..a players' manager who argued that one must get close to players.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2016; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
starchv.
/stɑːtʃ/, U.S. /stɑrtʃ/ 1.
a. transitive. To stiffen (cloth, clothes, etc.) with starch. Also intransitive.In quot. 1623 used with reference to other stiffening agents.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > cleaning > washing > washing clothes and textile articles > wash clothes [verb (transitive)] > starch
starch1390
conjee1698
clear-starch1709
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile manufacture > manufacture textile fabric or that which consists of > manufacture of textile fabric > treating or processing textile fabric > treat or process textile fabrics [verb (intransitive)] > other processes
shearc1340
starch1390
print1839
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile manufacture > manufacture textile fabric or that which consists of > manufacture of textile fabric > treating or processing textile fabric > treat or process textile fabric [verb (transitive)] > other processes
starch1390
scour1467
burl1483
waterc1500
calender1513
shoot1532
press1555
gum1612
reimbale1623
strike1701
bias1838
pad1839
spirit1854
bray1879
stream1883
crisp1892
block1905
Schreiner1905
mercerize1911
1390–1 [implied in: Norwich Sacrist's Roll in Notes & Queries (1915) 16 Jan. 48/1 Pro Coole pro starchyng .viij.d. (at starching n. 1)].
c1450 in T. Wright & R. P. Wülcker Anglo-Saxon & Old Eng. Vocab. (1884) I. 613/31 Stibio, to starche.
?c1450 in G. J. Aungier Hist. & Antiq. Syon Monastery (1840) 367 Whan the sexteyn..hathe wasche the corporas ones, sche..schal wasche them, sterche them, drye them.
?1578 W. Patten Let. Entertainm. Killingwoorth 47 Hiz shyrt..with rufs fayr starched.
1583 P. Stubbes Second Pt. Anat. Abuses sig. F.1v Haue they starching houses of purpose made to starch in?
1602 B. Jonson Poetaster iv. i. sig. F4v And aske you, where you bought your Lawne? and..Who starches you? View more context for this quotation
1617 F. Moryson Itinerary iii. iv. i. 172 Their ruffes are not so great as ours, and they haue little skill in washing, starching, or smoothing linnen.
1623 tr. Proclam. for Reformation by Philip IV for Gouernment of his Kingdomes xiv. 39 Plaine falling bands..without any inuention, bone-lace..or any other kinde of setting forth, or starched with gumme, powdred blew, or any other colour.
1698 J. Fryer New Acct. E.-India & Persia iv. vi. 200 They have..a great Stone, on which they beat their Cloaths till clean: and if for family-use, starch them with Congee.
1718 Free-thinker No. 28. 1 A Milliner in the Neighbourhood, who Starches his Ruffs.
1787 Excursions Parnassus 43 In from the garden half besotted, To starch her linen, Madam trotted.
1850 Gaz. of Union 25 May 339/3 When lace has been starched and dried ready for ironing, spread it out as smooth as possible on the ironing cloth.
1859 Ohio Cultivator 1 Jan. 157/2 Using three times as much starch as she needs every time she starches—throwing away the surplus, of course.
1912 ‘P. Wentworth’ Devil's Wind ix. 122 All her garments appeared to have been freshly starched for the occasion.
1960 Washington Post 31 Jan. (Amer. Weekly) 16/3 Why can't you get the laundry to quit starching my shirts?
2004 J. O'Sullivan & T. Taylor New Napkin Folding 12/2 You'll need extra time to starch and iron your napkins for best results.
b. transitive. To apply starch to (the beard or moustache) as a stiffening agent. Now chiefly historical.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautification of the person > beautification of the hair > preparations used on the hair > apply preparations to the hair [verb (transitive)] > starch
starch1589
1589 T. Nashe To Students in R. Greene Menaphon Epist. sig. **3 Sufficeth them.., hauing starched their beardes most curiouslie, to make a peripateticall path into the inner parts of the Citie.
1642 J. Howell Instr. Forreine Travell v. 68 If the one hath a Fancy to stars his mustachos.
1664 S. Butler Hudibras: Second Pt. ii. i. 14 It [sc. your beard] does your visage more adorn, Then if 'twere prun'd, & starcht, & landerd, And cut square by the Russian Standerd.
1731 E. Thomas Life Corinna p. xxi His Valet being some Hours every Morning, in Starching his Beard, and Curling his Whiskers.
1844 Penny Mag. 9 Mar. 92/1 Starching the beard and curling the whiskers appear to have been very modish about two centuries ago.
1915 Atlantic Monthly Sept. 429/2 The spectacle of a man starching and curling his whiskers.
2011 M. A. Johnston Beard Fetish ii. 95 Giovanni Della Casa's conduct manual for gentlemen..condemns curling, starching, or colouring the beard.
2. transitive. To whiten (the face) with starch; to powder (one's face). Now rare (U.S. regional in later use).
ΚΠ
?a1425 (a1415) Lanterne of Liȝt (Harl.) (1917) 132 (MED) Þere ben þoo þat steerchen or poppen her facis.
a1450 (?1419–20) Friar Daw's Reply (Digby) l. 122 in P. L. Heyworth Jack Upland (1968) 76 Who tyþiþ bot ȝe þe anet & the mente, Sterching ȝour faces, to be holden holi.
?1529 R. Hyrde tr. J. L. Vives Instr. Christen Woman i. ix. sig. Iv She that is with so many oyntementes slubbered and starched, is hit to be called a face or a sore?
1574 A. Golding tr. J. Calvin Serm. Epist. St. Paule to Galathians xiii. f. 95v Lyke the painting of harlots that take great paine too starch their faces.
1656 Simpleton the Smith 3 in R. Cox Acteon & Diana (ed. 2) I will go wash my hands, and starch my face.
1887 Atlanta (Georgia) Constit. 17 Apr. 14/2 You can bathe in hot or cold water, and starch your face by a looking glass.
1906 Hondo (Texas) Anvil Herald 26 May If..every wife would spruce up and starch her face as much for her husband as she does for the husband of the other woman there would be a double multiplication of human happiness.
1966 Denton (Texas) Record-Chronicle 30 Sept. 1/1 A century ago, the year 1866..Our grandma was the gal who made the city click... She starched her face with Faultless starch.
3. † b. intransitive. To employ stiff or formal language. Obsolete. rare.
a. transitive. To make (oneself, a person, the face or features, etc.) formal, severe, or haughty; to make (discourse, speech, etc.) formal or excessively serious. Also with up.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > a standard of conduct > act in accordance with [verb (transitive)] > make formal, rigid, or precise
starch1601
formalize1855
the world > action or operation > behaviour > bad behaviour > discourtesy > treat discourteously [verb (transitive)] > treat with lack of affability > make reserved or formal in manner
starch1601
to ice over1741
stiffen1763
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > head > face > face with expression or expression > face with expression [verb (transitive)] > compose or set > in severe or formal expression
starch1601
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > ornateness > embellish [verb (transitive)] > make bombastic
to emboss1564
bombast1573
starch1656
tumefy1677
1601 W. I. Whipping of Satyre sig. C4v Your stately Muse starched with stiffe-neckt pride Dain'd it amongst vs most imperiously.
c1604 Charlemagne (1938) iii. 47 Dothe not fawne, nor crautche, nor crynge, nor startche hys countenance.
1615 A. Niccholes Disc. Marriage & Wiving vii. 21 But as to please woman hath much starched vp man from his slouenry, so to delight man..hath the woman thus increased in prides.
1644 J. Milton Areopagitica 27 How to be wisht were such an obedient unanimity as this, what a fine conformity would it starch us all into?
1656 E. Prestwich Hectors i. i. 1 His Discourse..was not too much starched with Formality, nor yet rudely loose.
1677 R. Gilpin Dæmonol. Sacra ii. iii. 207 A quaint discourse, starched up in the dress of common Rhetorick.
1763 Brit. Mag. 4 495 Tho' with prudish airs she starch her, Still she longs.
1771 T. Smollett Humphry Clinker III. 76 She starched up her behaviour with a double proportion of reserve.
1808 Inq. Pastoral Poetry in A. Ramsay Gentle Shepherd 167 Among the inhabitants of the country, as well as among those that have been starched by the ceremonies, and smoothed and brightened by the agitation and bustle of a town.
1814 J. Austen Mansfield Park I. ix. 180 Starched up into seeming piety, but with heads full of something very different. View more context for this quotation
1858 R. Rowe Peter 'Possum's Portfolio 143 I starched my countenance up to the due degree of decorum, and went in.
1911 M. P. Agnetti tr. A. Fogazzaro Leila vii. 230 He talks..with great stiffness. You would say he was starched with self-consciousness.
1928 Present-day Amer. Lit. Oct. 43/2 In structure..the book models governed him [sc. Wordsworth]—formality starched every sentence.
2009 S. Walker Power of Tolkien's Prose v. 143 The dwarvish dialect is formal and formulaic, ‘a fair jaw-cracker’ starched with ceremonial phrase.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > bad behaviour > discourtesy > be discourteous [verb (intransitive)] > not be affable
to make oneself strange1390
to make (it) strangec1405
to make (it) strange1598
to wait one's distance1600
to wait one's distance1642
starch1698
prim1721
to cast snowballs1725
to put on the stranger1809
to show the cold shoulder1816
stiffen1864
to play hard to get1929
1698 M. Henry Acct. Life P. Henry viii. 175 He us'd to say, he could not Starch in his Preaching;..knowing that where the Language..is stiff, and forced, and fine (as they call it) it doth not reach the greatest part of the Hearers.
4. † b. transitive. To apply a starch paste adhesive to (a photographic print) in order to mount it for display. Obsolete.
a. transitive. To fasten or stick with starch or (formerly) a starch-based paste. Also with on, up.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > working with specific materials > working with other materials > work with other materials [verb (transitive)] > fix or fasten with adhesive
glue13..
lute1489
paste1561
gum1592
starch1602
solution1891
seccotine1903
Scotch-tape1947
tape1956
sellotape1960
epoxy1974
1602 T. Dekker Satiro-mastix sig. E3 I haue a set of letters readie starcht to my hands.
1654 W. Charleton Physiologia Epicuro-Gassendo-Charltoniana iv. ii. 458 Inscribed upon papers (after the manner of those usually starcht on to Weather-glasses, to denote the several degrees).
1673 E. Hickeringill Gregory 28 Some of the Common Herd of mankind..would quietly..pass by this Title-Page, (when starch'd up with the Play-house Bills).
1676 T. Miller Compl. Modellist 4 In starching three or four sheets of paper together.
1705 M. Prior Satire upon Poets in New Coll. Poems State Affairs 342 And find'st thy Picture starch'd 'gainst Suburb Wall.
1717 S. Sewall Diary 8 Jan. (1973) II. 843 A virulent Libel was starch'd on upon the Three Doors of the Meeting House.
1850 R. Bell Ladder of Gold I. i. vii. 133 The little dimity curtains in the attic window..had as prim an aspect as if they were starched to the glass.
1910 U.S. Patent 947,104 1/1 The protector and neck band guard prevent the outer layer of the neck band from being starched to the inner layer.
1941 W. G. Morse Pardon my Harvard Accent iv. 56 A shirt torn for a foot across the back..was mended by cutting off a piece of the shirttail and starching it to the underneath side of the torn back.
2004 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 20 June ii. 30 Starched to the left-hand wall (as you walk toward the galleries) you see the cut-outs from colorful print dresses and shirts.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > photography > a photograph > [verb (transitive)] > apply starch paste mountant
starch1864
1864 J. Towler Silver Sunbeam xxxii. 205 Photographs may be cut out of the proper size and shape either before they are starched or gummed or afterward.
1874 Brit. Jrnl. Photogr. 24 Apr. 197/2 The prints..are then pressed quite flat with another cloth, and dried before they are starched.
1892 Photogr. Ann. II. 53 The print should be mounted dry, by starching the back and allowing it to dry and moistening the mount.
5. transitive. Boxing colloquial (originally and chiefly North American). To defeat by knockout; to floor. Cf. to knock the starch out of at starch n. Phrases (b).
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting sports > boxing > box [verb (transitive)] > knock down or out
to knock (formerly also hit, etc.) out of time1821
to send to dorse1822
dorse1825
to knock out1883
to put out1895
stop1895
K.O.1922
kayo1923
starch1930
1930 Bluefield (W. Va.) Daily Tel. 19 June 9/1 Primo gashed Meyer's eyes with his terrific hitting and then proceeded in his usual systematic mode of ‘starching’ an antagonist.
1984 Toronto Star 28 Mar. b1/6 Prior to that he had starched Ray Seales at Boston on Feb. 2, 1979.
2009 L. J. Wertheim Blood Cage 3 Smiling, Rothwell reached around and starched him with a stiff right jab.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2016; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
<
n.1440
adj.a1716v.1390- etc with a full throat
- etc with a person's head
- etc would be hard pressed to
- etc wouldn't be found dead in, with
- etc wouldn't be seen dead in, with
- etc years
- etc your heads together
- etc — bells out of
- etca wallop
- etcetera oath
- etceteraize
- etceteraly
- etceterarist
- etceteras
- etch
- etch figure
- etch out
- etch pit
- etch-crop
- etch-water
- etchable
- etchant
- etchants
- etchcrop
- etched