notch

English

Etymology

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”).

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /nɒtʃ/
(General American) IPA^(key): /nɑt͡ʃ/
Audio (AU) (file)
Rhymes: -ɒtʃ

Noun

notch (plural notches)

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. (US slang) 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
An indentation.
A mountain pass; a defile.
(finance) A discontinuous change in a taxation schedule.
(informal) A level or degree.
This car is a notch better than the other.
Can you speak a notch louder, please?
- 2014, Daniel Taylor, "World Cup 2014: Uruguay sink England as Suárez makes his mark," guardian.co.uk, 20 June:
  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 1261299044, 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.
(electronics) A portion of a mobile phone that overlaps the edge of the screen, used to house camera, sensors etc. while maximizing screen space.

Derived terms

Terms derived from notch (noun)

jugular notch
notch baby
notchback
notchboard
notch girdle
notchless
notch on one's bedpost, notch on the bedpost
notchy
top notch
suprasternal notch

Translations

V-shaped cut

Arabic: please add this translation if you can
Armenian: խազ (hy) (xaz), քարթ (hy) (kʿartʿ)
Bulgarian: рязка (bg) f (rjazka), жлеб (bg) m (žleb)
Catalan: osca (ca) f
Chinese:
Mandarin: 刻痕 (zh) (kèhén), 凹痕 (zh) (āohén)
Dutch: kerf (nl)
Esperanto: noĉo
Finnish: lovi (fi)
French: entaille (fr) f
Galician: entalla (gl) f, osca f, ozca f
German: Kerbe (de) f, Nut (de) f, Furche (de) f
Hungarian: rovátka (hu)
Irish: scór m
Italian: tacca (it) f
Japanese: ノッチ (notchi)
Maori: kāniwha, kakari, arapata (a style used in carving)
Polish: karb (pl) m, nacięcie (pl) n, wręb m
Portuguese: chanfro (pt) m, entalho m
Romanian: crestătură (ro)
Russian: зару́бка (ru) f (zarúbka), вы́емка (ru) f (výjemka), паз (ru) m (paz), вы́рез (ru) m (výrez), пропи́л (ru) m (propíl)
Slovak: zárez m
Spanish: escotadura (es) f, ranura (es) f, muesca (es) f, entalladura (es) f, tarja (es) f
Swedish: hack (sv)
Thai: please add this translation if you can
Welsh: rhic m

such a cut, used for keeping a record

Armenian: խազ (hy) (xaz), քարթ (hy) (kʿartʿ)
Bulgarian: рабош m (raboš)
Catalan: osca (ca) f
Dutch: keep (nl)
Finnish: lovi (fi)
French: encoche (fr) f
German: Kerbe (de) f
Hungarian: rovás (hu), jelölés (hu)
Irish: scór m
Italian: tacca (it) f
Polish: narzaz (pl) m, nacięcie (pl) n
Portuguese: entalho m
Romanian: crestătură (ro) f
Russian: зару́бка (ru) f (zarúbka), засе́чка (ru) f (zaséčka), ме́тка (ru) f (métka)
Slovak: vrub
Spanish: tarja (es) f

indentation

Bulgarian: назъбване (bg) n (nazǎbvane)
Czech: zářez (cs), vrub (cs)
Dutch: inkerving (nl), kerf (nl)
Finnish: kolo (fi)
German: Einrückung (de) f, Einkerbung f, Senke (de) f, Beule (de) f, Vertiefung (de) f, Eindruck (de) m
Hungarian: bevágás (hu)
Italian: incavo (it) m, dentellatura f
Portuguese: indentação (pt) f
Russian: о́тступ (ru) m (ótstup) (paragraph), абза́ц (ru) m (abzác) (paragraph), вмя́тина (ru) f (vmjátina) (dent)
Spanish: talladura (es) f, entalladura (es) f

mountain pass

Bulgarian: клисура (bg) f (klisura)
Dutch: bergengte (nl), bergpas (nl)
Finnish: sola (fi)
Galician: portela f
German: Pass (de) m, Bergpass m, Engpass (de) m
Hungarian: hegyszoros (hu), szurdok (hu)
Italian: gola (it) f, passo (it) m
Maori: kakari
Portuguese: passo (pt) m, desfiladeiro (pt) m, garganta (pt) f
Russian: перева́л (ru) m (perevál)
Spanish: paso (es) m

level or degree

Bulgarian: ниво (bg) n (nivo), отметка (bg) f (otmetka)
Dutch: graad (nl), trede (nl)
Finnish: aste (fi), luokka (fi)
French: cran (fr) m
German: Stückchen (de) n, Spur (de) f, Tick (de) m, My (de) n, Stück (de) m, Stufe (de) f
Hungarian: fok (hu), fokozat (hu)
Italian: livello (it) m
Portuguese: nível (pt) m
Russian: у́ровень (ru) m (úrovenʹ), сте́пень (ru) f (stépenʹ)
Spanish: nivel (es) m, categoría (es) f

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

Hebrew: ^{(please verify)} שנת‎ (he) (shenet)

Verb

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

(transitive) To cut a notch in (something).
(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.
(transitive) To join by means of notches.
(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^{[www.portlandleader.net/articles/2010/10/21/sports/17734115.txt]}:
  Jenkins booted a pair of field goals, Hopkins and George Nwokoji each notched a touchdown.
(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.

Derived terms

notcher

Translations

to cut a notch

Bulgarian: врязвам (bg) (vrjazvam)
Catalan: oscar (ca)
Dutch: kerven (nl)
Esperanto: noĉi
Finnish: (a V-shaped cut) loveta; (an indentation) kaivertaa (fi)
German: einkerben (de), nuten (de), einschneiden (de), ausklinken
Italian: intaccare (it)
Maori: whakakānewha, whakakarikari, tōkari
Polish: karbować impf, nacinać impf, naciąć (pl) pf, narzynać impf, narżnąć pf, wrębiać impf, wrębić pf
Portuguese: entalhar (pt), chanfrar (pt)
Spanish: entallar (es), mellar (es)

to record by notches

Catalan: oscar (ca)
Dutch: inkepen (nl), kepen (nl)
Finnish: loveta
German: ankerben, anschreiben (de)
Italian: marcare (it)
Spanish: tarjar (es)

to join by means of notches

Dutch: inlaten (nl)
Finnish: salvoa (fi)

to achieve

Dutch: behalen (nl), bereiken (nl), boeken (nl)
Finnish: saavuttaa (fi), kirjata (fi)
German: erreichen (de), gelingen (de)
Italian: marcare (it), segnare (it), realizzare (it), conquistare (it)

References

Partridge, Eric (2006): Origins: A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English
Jonathon Green (2023), “notch n.¹”, in Green's Dictionary of Slang

Cebuano

Etymology

From nota + ch.

Pronunciation

Hyphenation: notch

Noun

notch

the penis