etch

[ ech ]

verb (used with object)

1. to cut, bite, or corrode with an acid or the like; engrave with an acid or the like, as to form a design in furrows that when charged with ink will give an impression on paper.
2. to produce (a design, image, etc.) by this method, as on copper or glass.
3. to outline clearly or sharply; delineate, as a person's features or character.
4. to fix permanently in or implant firmly on the mind; root in the memory:

   Our last conversation is etched in my memory.

5. Geology. to cut (a feature) into the surface of the earth by means of erosion:

   A deep canyon was etched into the land by the river's rushing waters.

verb (used without object)

1. to practice the art of etching.

noun

1. Printing. an acid used for etching.

etch

/ ɛtʃ /

verb

1. tr to wear away the surface of (a metal, glass, etc) by chemical action, esp the action of an acid
2. to cut or corrode (a design, decoration, etc) on (a metal or other plate to be used for printing) by using the action of acid on parts not covered by wax or other acid-resistant coating
3. tr to cut with or as if with a sharp implement

   he etched his name on the table

4. tr; usually passive to imprint vividly

   the event was etched on her memory

Derived Forms

• ˈetcher, noun

Other Words From

• etcher noun
• un·etched adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of etch¹

1625–35; < Dutch etsen < German ätzen to etch, originally cause to eat; cognate with Old English ettan to graze; akin to eat

Word History and Origins

Origin of etch¹

C17: from Dutch etsen, from Old High German azzen to feed, bite

Example Sentences

Top Biden aides—especially Secretary of State Antony Blinken, CIA director William Burns, and Middle East envoy Brett McGurk—engaged in an almost constant tag-team campaign to etch just the right phrase, and plot the precise benefits and trade-offs, to lure all sides to sign a deal.

From Slate

In prior publications, co-authors Richard Martel and Pierre Levesque from Montreal had shown that trace amounts of oxygen can slow the growth process and even etch the graphene away.

From Science Daily

In a 1996 profile, the Canadian newsmagazine Maclean’s wrote of Mr. Murphy: “He has become the unlikeliest of Canadian celebrities — a quirkily untelegenic presence who has defied the canons of conventional programming wisdom to etch himself upon the country’s consciousness.”

From New York Times

It can’t just be Etch A Sketch-ed, erased, and rewritten on the fly.

From Slate

Then, entering his log, he looked around as if to etch forever in his memory this piece of dead tree that had been his haven.

From Literature

Related Words

• depict
• engrave
• imprint
• incise
• ingrain
• inscribe
• portray
• stamp