lurch
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lurch¹
- /lɜːt͡ʃ/ UK
- /lɜɹt͡ʃ/ US
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)tʃ
Where it comes from
Originally a nautical term, found in lee-larches (“the sudden and violent rolls of a ship to the leeward in high seas”), of unknown origin. Possibly the same as lurch (“to move stealthily, evade by stooping”) (see below), or from French lâcher (“to let go”).
noun lurches
- A sudden or unsteady movement. the lurch of a ship, or of a drunkard
verb lurches · lurching · lurched
- To make such a sudden, unsteady movement. It occurred to me there was no time to lose, and dodging the boom as it once more lurched across the deck, I slipped aft and down the companion stairs into the cabin.
lurch²
- /lɜːt͡ʃ/ UK
- /lɜɹt͡ʃ/ US
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)tʃ
Where it comes from
From Middle English *lurchen (recorded only in Middle English lurcare, lurcard (“glutton”)), from Old French *lurcher, from Latin lurcō (“eat greedily, guzzle”), of uncertain origin. Compare Middle High German slurken (“to slurp”) (whence German schlurken).
verb lurches · lurching · lurched
- To swallow or eat greedily; to devour; hence, to swallow up. Too far off from great cities, which may hinder business; too near them, which lurcheth all provisions, and maketh everything dear.
lurch³
- /lɜːt͡ʃ/ UK
- /lɜɹt͡ʃ/ US
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)tʃ
Where it comes from
From Middle English lorchen, variant of Middle English lurken (“to lurk”). More at lurk.
verb lurches · lurching · lurched · lorch
- To evade by stooping; to lurk; lie in wait; go about in a sneaking way.
- To take by surprise; to unexpectedly detain.
- To rob. And in the brunt of seventeen battles since / He lurched all swords of the garland.
noun lurches · lorch
- A lift or heave.
lurch⁴
- /lɜːt͡ʃ/ UK
- /lɜɹt͡ʃ/ US
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)tʃ
Where it comes from
From Middle English *lurche (implied in derivative lurching), from Old French lourche (“deceived, embarrassed; also the name of a game”), from Proto-West Germanic *lort (“left; left-handed; crooked; bent; warped; underhanded; deceitful; limping”). Cognate to English lirt.
noun lurches
- A predicament or difficult situation. to leave someone in the lurch
- An old game played with dice and counters; a variety of the game of tables.
- A double score in cribbage for the winner when their adversary has not yet pegged their 31st hole. August 14, 1784, Horace Walpole, letter to the Hon. H. S. Conway Lady Blandford has cried her eyes out on losing a lurch.
verb lurches · lurching · lurched
- To defeat in the game of cribbage with a lurch (double score as explained under noun entry).
- To leave someone in the lurch; to cheat. Never deceive or lurch the sincere communicant.
Translations
Every language
noun sudden or unsteady movement
| Español | bandazo |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 踉跄 liàngqiàng |
| Français | embardée |
| Deutsch | Schlingern, Ruck |
| Italiano | barcollio, sbilanciamento, imbardata |
| Русский | рыво́к ryvók |
verb to make a sudden, unsteady movement
| Español | tambalearse, sacudirse (hacia) |
|---|---|
| Français | chanceler, faire une embardée, tituber, vaciller |
| Deutsch | taumeln, schlingern, torkeln, ruckeln |
| Italiano | barcollare |
| Русский | поша́тываться pošátyvatʹsja, пошатну́ться pošatnútʹsja |
Talk about this word "lurch." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/lurch. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. lurch. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/lurch "lurch." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/lurch.Cite this
@misc{lurch_2026,
title = {lurch},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/lurch},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
