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starch Definition

starch (stärc̸h)

noun

  1. a white, tasteless, odorless food substance found in potatoes, rice, corn, wheat, cassava, and many other vegetable foods: it is a granular solid, chemically a complex carbohydrate, (CHO), and is used in adhesives, sizes, foods, cosmetics, medicine, etc.
  2. a powdered form of this, used in laundering for stiffening cloth, fabrics, etc.
  3. starchy foods
  4. formal, unbending manner or behavior; stiffness
  5. ☆ Informal energy; vigor

Etymology: ME starche < sterchen, to stiffen < OE *stercan < stearc, rigid, stiff, akin to Ger stark, strong: see stark

transitive verb

to stiffen with or as if with starch

starch Related Forms
starch′·less adjective
starch Synonyms

starch

n.

  1. A laundering agent

    stiffening, sizing, laundry starch, cornstarch, arrowroot starch, spray starch.

  2. A complex carbohydrate

    glycogen, polysaccharide, carbohydrate; see carbohydrate, sugar.

  3. A stiff bearing

    stiffness, formality, ceremony, decorum.

  4. Vigor

    energy, vitality, stamina; see vigor 1, 2.

starch Synonyms

starch

v.

dip in starch, add starch, make stiff; see stiffen 2, thicken 2.

starch Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • corn/maize: Free from wheat dairy lactose sugar yeast gluten salt corn/maize soya starch.
  • hydrolyse: Sugar may be listed as glucose, sucrose, honey, dextrose, maltose, fructose, hydrolysed starch or syrup.
  • digest: It also digests the starch in your food into glucose.
  • stabilize: Exp Merigel 113 Instant Starches Global Exp Merigel 113 is a highly crosslinked and stabilized pregelatinised waxy maize starch.

Adjective modifier

  • waxy: MIRA-SPERSE® 2000 is a unique cold water swelling modified waxy corn starch that hydrates slowly to allow ease of dispersion.
  • pregelatinized: These are: lactose, magnesium stearate, starch, pregelatinized starch.
  • pregelatinised: Merigel 310 Instant Starches Global Merigel 310 is a highly crosslinked pregelatinised waxy maize starch.
  • modified: We do not buy fruit dusted with modified starch.
  • unmodified: Tapioca #1 Cook-Up Starches Global Tapioca #1 is an unmodified tapioca starch that imparts a bland flavor and soft gel structure in food systems.
  • resistant: Resistant starch, however, has been reported to stimulate growth of the more anaerobic Clostridia species.

Modifies a noun

  • granule: The starch granules absorb liquid, causing the sauce to thicken.
  • hydrolysis: Starch hydrolysis was measured by the change in iodine staining ( as determined using a spectrophotometer ).
  • blocker: Posted by: beth at January 30, 2005 09:42 PM are there any known side effets to starch blockers?
  • digestion: For example, a simple starch digestion experiment might use a neutral starch suspension in a test tube at room temperature.

Noun used with modifier

  • tapioca: It was recently reported that supermarkets in Australia will introduce biodegradable bags made from tapioca starch in April 2003.
  • cook-up: As with standard cook-up starches, the granules have a definite size, structure and rounded shape, producing an extremely smooth texture.
  • maize: Various modifications of maize starch can be made to obtain the desired results in foods.
  • corn: We look strange in the radio room all powdered down with corn starch.
  • soya: Free from wheat dairy lactose sugar yeast gluten salt corn/maize soya starch.
  • wheat: The paper is sized on the surface with wheat starch.