VocabauraVOCABAURA

inch

noun · verb

Simple meaning

A depth of one inch on the ground, used as a measurement of rainfall.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

inch
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈɪntʃ

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. meteorology

    A depth of one inch on the ground, used as a measurement of rainfall.

  2. figuratively

    Any very short distance.

  3. A depth of one inch in a glass, used as a rough measurement of alcoholic beverages.

  4. Any of various similar units of length in other traditional systems of measurement.

verb

  1. Advance slowly, as if by inches

  2. To drive by inches, or small degrees.

  3. To deal out by inches; to give sparingly.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
A2 · Elementary
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
Varies by meaning

Share your sentence

Write your own example sentence using “inch”. We review each one before it appears.

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

Various / unit

square inchhalf inchinch diameterquarter inch

Other combinations

cubic inchinch gunsinch pipe

Tap the highlighted word to open its own entry.

Ask Vocabaura

Understand the word your way.

What Does It Mean Here?

Words can change meaning depending on context.

Use it yourself

Knowing “inch” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.

Know the meaning? Practice using it in a real situation, free, no credits.

Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.