Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

porch

American  
[pawrch, pohrch] / pɔrtʃ, poʊrtʃ /

noun

  1. an exterior appendage to a building, forming a covered approach or vestibule to a doorway.

  2. a veranda.

  3. the Porch, the portico or stoa in the agora of ancient Athens, where the Stoic philosopher Zeno of Citium and his followers met.

  4. Obsolete. a portico.


porch British  
/ pɔːtʃ /

noun

  1. a low structure projecting from the doorway of a house and forming a covered entrance

  2. an exterior roofed gallery, often partly enclosed; veranda

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • porchless adjective
  • porchlike adjective
  • underporch noun

Etymology

Origin of porch

1250–1300; Middle English porche < Old French < Latin porticus porch, portico

Vocabulary lists containing porch

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Set against the distant Blue Ridge Mountains, it depicts a favorite Southern activity—akin to her widely admired maple-sugaring paintings set up north—embellished with details like the tiny rocking horse on her front porch.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 11, 2026

A covered porch houses a sizable grill for outdoor meal preparation.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

After Heuermann was jailed, his wife and two children stayed in the house, even grilling on the front porch despite gawkers on the front lawn.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026

It was hard to keep the pollen out of the porch, and even harder to keep people in.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 7, 2026

By the time he’d straightened up again, Chip had joined him on the porch, either because he was curious about the letter too, or because he really did have a crush on Katherine.

From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix