notch

Recorded since 1577, probably a rebracketing of an + otch, which noun stems from Middle French oche (“notch”), itself from the Old French verb ochier (“to notch”), of uncertain origin, but possibly related to French hocher and English nick (“small cut, notch”).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /nɒtʃ/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /nɑt͡ʃ/

• Audio (AU)

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• Rhymes: -ɒtʃ

notch (plural notches)

1. A V-shaped cut.
   1. Such a cut, used for keeping a record.

      The notches in that tribe's warrior axe handles stand for killed enemies.

2. An indentation.
3. A mountain pass; a defile.
4. (US slang) A woman.
   • 2003, “California Girls”, in Married to the Game, performed by Too $hort:

     These ladies from the west got game
     Who got the best, VA, DC, Georgia, New York, Texas, Louisiana, or Florida
     The Middwest got some super notches
     You eva seen Cali's finest, man, who could top us

5. (finance) A discontinuous change in a taxation schedule.
6. (informal) A level or degree.

   This car is a notch better than the other.

   Can you speak a notch louder, please?

   • 2014 June 20, Daniel Taylor, “World Cup 2014: Uruguay sink England as Suárez makes his mark”, in guardian.co.uk:

     a better team might also have done more to expose Uruguay’s occasionally brittle defence, but England’s speed of thought and movement in their attacking positions was a good notch or two down from the Italy game.

   • 2017, BioWare, Mass Effect: Andromeda, Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Ugh!:

     Your doctor is one of the nosiest asari I've ever met. And that's saying A LOT. She needs to take it down four or five notches, or I won't be long for this show.

7. (electronics) A portion of a mobile phone that overlaps the edge of the screen, used to house a camera, sensors etc. while maximizing screen space.

notch (third-person singular simple present notches, present participle notching, simple past and past participle notched)

1. (transitive) To cut a notch in (something).
2. (transitive) To record (a score or similar) by making notches on something.

   The tribe's hunters notch their kills by notches on each's axe's handle.

3. (transitive) To join by means of notches.
4. (transitive, informal) To achieve (something); to add to one's score or record of successes.

   Synonym: notch up

   The team notched a pair of shutout wins on Sunday.

   • 2010 October 21, “Panthers' football team”, in Portland Leader‎:

     Jenkins booted a pair of field goals, Hopkins and George Nwokoji each notched a touchdown.

• notcher

notch (third-person singular simple present notches, present participle notching, simple past and past participle notched)

1. (transitive) To fit (an arrow) to a bow by means of the notch cut at the end of the arrow; to nock.
   • 1885, John Niles Hubbard, An Account of Sa-go-ye-wat-ha, Or Red Jacket, and His People, 1750-1830, page 31:

     Notching an arrow on the string of his tried and unerring bow, he raised his sinewy arms […]

   • 1913, Massachusetts Reformatory (Concord, Mass.), Our Paper, page 530:

     As Uncle Bunse threw his armful of stuff into the canoe, half a dozen other Indians crept forward, notching their arrows to shoot.

• Partridge, Eric (2006): Origins: A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English
• Jonathon Green (2024) “notch n.¹”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang

From nota + ch.

• Hyphenation: notch

notch

1. the penis