poach

1 of 2

verb (1)

ˈpōch 

poached; poaching; poaches

transitive verb

: to cook in simmering liquid

poach

2 of 2

verb (2)

poached; poaching; poaches

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)

2

a

: 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

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• boil
• coddle
• parboil
• simmer
• stew

Examples of poach in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Like Kyle Shanahan’s offense has proliferated the league in recent seasons, with coaches being poached left and right in the process, the Niners’ football operations department has also been raided. —Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 23 Apr. 2024

Others charged with felony conspiracy to commit poaching crimes include Travis Bort, Trevor Martini, James Brasier, Jon Pasadava and Mikayla Pasadava. —Ari Plachta, Sacramento Bee, 22 Apr. 2024

Elon Musk says Tesla is increasing salaries for its AI engineers in order to stay competitive, saying OpenAI is trying to poach the company’s top talent. —Paige McGlauflin, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024

There have been no poaching events of rhinos in the areas since 2015. —Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 28 Mar. 2024

All callers can remain anonymous, and anyone who provides information that leads to a citation in the poaching case will be eligible to receive a cash reward. —Travis Hall, Field & Stream, 12 Apr. 2024

The Korean carmaker famously poached BMW’s M division boss Albert Biermann in a bid to elevate the brand’s performance. —Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 12 Apr. 2024

There are many other ways to make meat succulent — poaching it as in Hainanese chicken or braising it as in Indian curries — but browning isn’t one of them. —Julia Moskin, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2024

Earlier this year Germany’s environment ministry, which is headed up by Steffi Lemke of the Green party, raised the possibility of stricter limits on the import of hunting trophies due to poaching concerns. —Nadine Schmidt, Sarah Dean and Ingrid Formanek, CNN, 3 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English pocchen, from Middle French pocher, from Old French poché poached, literally, bagged, from poche bag, pocket — more at pouch

Verb (2)

Middle French pocher, of Germanic origin; akin to Middle English poken to poke

First Known Use

Verb (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1611, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Phrases Containing poach

• poach on someone's territory/turf

Kids Definition

poach

1 of 2 verb

ˈpōch 

: to cook in simmering liquid

poached eggs

poach

2 of 2 verb

: to hunt or fish unlawfully

poacher noun

Etymology

Verb

Middle English pochen "to boil an egg without its shell so that the white covers the yolk like a bag," from early French pocher (same meaning), from earlier pochier, literally, "to put into a bag," from poche "bag, pocket"

Verb

from early French pocher "to hunt or fish unlawfully"