Meaning & use
spatch
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Meanings
verbtransitiveinformalregional
To split open and flatten a bird or fish for cooking, often by removing the backbone.
Grammar: Takes an object: spatch the chicken.
Patterns
- spatch something
- spatch a bird
She learned to spatch a whole chicken before grilling it.
The recipe says to spatch the fish and season it well.
nouncountablerareregional
A splint or makeshift support for a broken limb, especially in rural or historical contexts.
Grammar: Countable; usually singular in this sense.
Patterns
- a spatch for something
The farmer made a spatch from two sticks to support his injured arm.
In old medical texts, a spatch was used to keep a broken leg straight.
Word forms
| third person singular | spatches |
|---|---|
| past tense | spatched |
| past participle | spatched |
| -ing form | spatching |
| plural | spatches |
Common combinations
- spatch a chicken
- He decided to spatch a chicken for the barbecue.
- spatch the bird
- You need to spatch the bird before roasting.
- spatch a fish
- They spatch a fish to cook it evenly.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- spatchcock noun
- A bird that has been split and flattened for cooking.
- spatchcock verb
- To split and flatten a bird for cooking; the more usual term.
Commonly confused: spatch or spatchcock?
spatch vs spatchcock
Spatchcock is the standard term for the cooking method; spatch is a rare shortening or variant.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'spatch' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The past tense 'spatched' is correct for the cooking sense. Option An is wrong because the subject 'she' needs 'spatches' or 'spatched'. Option C uses 'spatchcock', which is a different word. Option D is wrong because 'spatch' as a noun means a splint, not a verb here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “spatch”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.