n.
- A small piece of material affixed to another, larger piece to conceal, reinforce, or repair a worn area, hole, or tear.
- A small piece of cloth used for patchwork.
- A small cloth badge affixed to a garment as a decoration or an insignia, as of a military unit.
- A dressing or covering applied to protect a wound or sore.
- A pad or shield of cloth worn over an eye socket or an injured eye.
- A transdermal patch.
- See beauty spot (sense 2).
- A small piece, part, or section, especially that which differs from or contrasts with the whole: a patch of thin ice; patches of sunlight.
- A small plot or piece of land, especially one that produces or is used for growing specific vegetation: a briar patch; a bean patch.
- An indefinite period of time; a spell: weathered a difficult patch after losing his job.
- A temporary, removable electronic connection, as one between two components in a communications system.
- Computer Science. A piece of code added to software in order to fix a bug, especially as a temporary correction between two releases.
v., patched, patch·ing, patch·es. v.tr.
- To put a patch or patches on.
- To make by sewing scraps of material together: patch a quilt.
- To mend, repair, or put together, especially hastily, clumsily, or poorly: They patched together the broken statues with glue and plaster. The delegates will be forced to patch up their differences.
- To connect temporarily (electronic components), as with a patch cord.
- Computer Science. To correct a bug in (an item of software), especially as a temporary correction between releases.
Electronics. To be connected temporarily.
[Middle English pacche, perhaps alteration of pece, pieche, piece. See piece.]
patchable patch'a·ble adj.patcher patch'er n.
patch2 (păch)
n.
A fool or clown; a dolt.
[Perhaps from Italian dialectal paccio, from Old Italian.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
