poach

\ ˈpōch

How to pronounce poach (audio)

\

poached; poaching; poaches

Definition of poach

(Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

: to cook in simmering liquid

poach

poached; poaching; poaches

Definition of poach (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

1 : to encroach upon especially for the purpose of taking something

2 : to trespass for the purpose of stealing game also : to take game or fish illegally

transitive verb

1 : to trespass on a field poached too frequently by the amateur — The Times Literary Supplement (London)

2a : to take (game or fish) by illegal methods

b : to appropriate (something) as one's own

c : to attract (someone, such as an employee or customer) away from a competitor

Examples of poach in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb The video game publisher behind the Grand Theft Auto franchise, Take-Two, cancelled its contract with a smaller developer—and then tried to poach its entire team. — Sarah Frier, Bloomberg.com, "Snap’s Surprisingly Simple Solution to the Donald Trump Question," 3 June 2020 But analysts say that poaching an executive from an iconic American company likely won't be enough to reassure Washington, especially as the coronavirus pandemic revives long-simmering US-China tensions. — Sherisse Pham, CNN, "TikTok needs to win over Washington. Hiring a CEO from Disney won't be enough," 21 May 2020 For his electric-car rivals, that’s an open invitation to start poaching engineers now. — Owen Thomas, SFChronicle.com, "Nobody tells Elon Musk what to do. Maybe that’s the problem," 13 May 2020 Since the country’s coronavirus lockdown began in early April, no new rhino poaching incidents have been identified. — Dina Fine Maron, National Geographic, "Botswana is evacuating black rhinos amid poaching threat," 1 May 2020 And then there is Farfetch and Net-a-Porter, which have poached a lot of business. — Phil Wahba, Fortune, "Neiman Marcus may file for bankruptcy, but either way, it needs to get slimmer," 24 Apr. 2020 And any stimulus funds deposited can be poached by creditors or even banks before a judge can hear the case. — Kiah Collier And Ren Larson, ProPublica, "Coronavirus Put Her Out of Work, Then Debt Collectors Froze Her Savings Account," 22 Apr. 2020 When ready to serve, add soft-boiled egg halves or, crack whole eggs into broth and let simmer and poach until yolks are just cooked. — Kim Sunée, Anchorage Daily News, "This ramen soup with caramelized kimchi is nourishing and adaptable," 9 Apr. 2020 And, Becky Krystal poached a batch, figuring out the simplest way is also the best. — The Washington Post, "Free Range on Food: Learning to cook, Passover, taking control of the kitchen, this week's recipes and more!," 1 Apr. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'poach.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near poach

poach on someone's territory/turf

Statistics for poach

Cite this Entry

“Poach.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/poach. Accessed 4 Aug. 2020.

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