parched

[ pahrcht ]

adjective

1. extremely or completely dried, as by heat, sun, or wind:

   Dry shrubs cover parts of this parched valley in the South Hebron Hills.

2. very thirsty:

   After each shift in the ship’s engine room, I was dead tired and totally parched, needing large amounts of water.

3. (of peas, beans, grains, etc.) slightly toasted or roasted:

   The village folk customarily have one meal a day of parched grains, so there is always a crowd around the old widow’s oven.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of parch ( def ).

Other Words From

• parch·ed·ly [pahr, -chid-lee, pahrcht, -], adverb
• parch·ed·ness noun
• un·parched adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of parched¹

parch ( def ) + -ed ²( def )

Example Sentences

The rivers, in parts, are now completely dry and resemble a parched desert.

From BBC

A sudden shutoff of water supplies has dried up the Kern River in Bakersfield, leaving thousands of dead fish on the parched riverbed.

From Los Angeles Times

The fire raced up into the mountains and was fueled by brush that had been fed by two consecutive wet winters, and then parched by the Earth’s hottest summer on record.

From Los Angeles Times

Even as a moist blanket of air in the marine layer thickens, rising to 4,500 feet by Sunday, conditions above that remain parched.

From Los Angeles Times

Oregon, Idaho and Washington are also dealing with hundreds of fires resulting from multiple weeks of dry lightning strikes on parched vegetation.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• arid
• scorched
• thirsty
• withered