Parched

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /pɑɹt͡ʃt/

Definitions

1. Suffering from severe dryness that results from insufficient moisture or water consumption in both the environment and living organisms
2. Describing a condition marked by a lack of hydration leading to extreme thirst and nutrient deficiency in flora or fauna
3. Experiencing an intense state of dryness due to an absence of water or moisture, which can affect both living beings and their surroundings

Etymology: "Parched" is the past participle of "parch", a verb that in Middle English meant "to roast" as much as "to dry". The older sense is still visible in the phrase "parched corn", grain toasted until it was dry and crisp. Middle English "parchen" and "paarchen" appear to have carried both ideas at once, so drying and scorching were not clearly separated. The verb's origin is uncertain. It may be a variant of the Middle English "perchen", also meaning "to roast", but no firm ancestor has been identified beyond that. Its sense of heat stripping moisture away is what gives the adjective its force: "parched" describes ground or throats that have been dried almost to the point of cracking.

Synonyms: dry, thirsty, arid, dehydrated, desiccated

Antonyms: moist, hydrated, wet, saturated