inch
verb/ɪntʃ/
/ɪntʃ/
[intransitive, transitive]Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they inch | /ɪntʃ/ /ɪntʃ/ |
| he / she / it inches | /ˈɪntʃɪz/ /ˈɪntʃɪz/ |
| past simple inched | /ɪntʃt/ /ɪntʃt/ |
| past participle inched | /ɪntʃt/ /ɪntʃt/ |
| -ing form inching | /ˈɪntʃɪŋ/ /ˈɪntʃɪŋ/ |
- to move or make something move slowly and carefully in a particular direction
- + adv./prep. She moved forward, inching towards the rope.
- She inched cautiously towards the edge of the cliff.
- The cat inched a little closer.
- inch something + adv./prep. I inched the car forward.
- He inched his way through the narrow passage.
Oxford Collocations DictionaryInch is used with these nouns as the object:- way
Word Originlate Old English ynce, from Latin uncia ‘twelfth part’, from unus ‘one’ (probably denoting a unit). Compare with ounce.
Check pronunciation:
inch