poach
/pəʊtʃ/ IELTSAcademic
verb
- 1.
To cook food gently in hot water or another liquid. People often poach eggs, fish, or fruit.
- I like to poach eggs for breakfast.
- The chef poached the fish in milk.
- 2.
To take someone or something from another person or place, especially unfairly or secretly. It is often used for workers, customers, or players.
- The company poached two engineers from a rival firm.
- They poached the star player last season.
- 3.
To hunt or take animals, fish, or plants illegally.
- He was fined for poaching deer.
- Poachers often target rare birds.
Adinary Nuance
Poach is not the same as steal, though it can sound similar in business or sports. It usually means taking a person, customer, or player from a rival, often by tempting them away. For cooking, poach means gentle cooking in liquid, not frying or boiling hard.
In other languages
- Vietnamese
- luộc chín
- Spanish
- escalfar
- Chinese
- 水煮
- Japanese
- ポーチする
- Korean
- 삶다
Etymology
Poach came into English from Old French in the 14th century. The cooking sense likely grew from an older word meaning to cook in a pouch or bag-like skin; the illegal-taking sense came later.
Common phrases
poached eggspoach a playerpoach staffpoaching in the wild
Synonyms
Related words
Frequently asked questions
- Is poach a formal word in business English?
- Yes, in business it is fairly common. It usually means hiring someone from a rival company.
- What is the difference between poach and steal?
- Steal is general. Poach is more specific and often sounds like taking someone from a rival.
- How do I use poach for food?
- Use it for gentle cooking in liquid. Common examples are poached eggs and poached fish.
- Is poach used for animals too?
- Yes. It means hunting or taking animals illegally.