Couch

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /kaʊt͡ʃ/

Definitions

1. A piece of upholstered furniture designed for seating multiple people, typically found in living rooms
2. A piece of furniture often found in homes, designed for sitting or reclining, that typically accommodates multiple people with added comfort features such as cushions
3. A piece of furniture that provides comfortable seating for several individuals, commonly situated in living areas and frequently equipped with cushions

Etymology: The furniture sense of "couch" comes from a verb that means to lie down. Middle English "couchen" was borrowed from Old French "(se) couchier" or "(se) colchier," meaning "go to bed" or "lay down," which in turn descended from Latin "collocare," "set in place," built from "com-" ("together") and "locare" ("to place"). The same Latin root gave English the verb "collocate," so the two words are doublets. The noun followed from that sense: a couch was first a place to lie down, and only later a piece of seating. A separate "couch" is a different word entirely. Couch grass, a stubborn weed, takes its name from a variant of "quitch," which descends from Old English "cwice," meaning "alive" or "lively," and is related to "quick." The noun "couch" in the sense of a bed or resting place (from the verb) is unrelated to the grass.

Synonyms: sofa, settee, divan