hatch

1 of 5

noun (1)

ˈhach 

1

: a small door or opening (as in an airplane or spaceship)

an escape hatch

2

a

: an opening in the deck of a ship or in the floor or roof of a building

b

: the covering for such an opening

c

: hatchway

d

: compartment

3

: floodgate

see also:

down the hatch

hatch

2 of 5

verb (1)

hatched; hatching; hatches

intransitive verb

1

: to produce young by incubation

2

a

: to emerge from an egg, chrysalis, or pupa

b

: to give forth young or imagoes

3

: to incubate eggs : brood

transitive verb

1

a

: to produce (young) from an egg by applying natural or artificial heat

b

: incubate sense 1a

2

: to bring into being : originate

especially : to concoct in secret

hatch a plot

hatchability

ˌha-chə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

hatchable

ˈha-chə-bəl 

adjective

hatcher noun

hatch

3 of 5

noun (2)

1

: an act or instance of hatching

2

: a brood of hatched young

hatch

4 of 5

verb (2)

hatched; hatching; hatches

transitive verb

1

: to inlay with narrow bands of distinguishable material

a silver handle hatched with gold

2

: to mark (something, such as a drawing or engraving) with fine closely spaced lines

hatch

5 of 5

noun (3)

plural hatches

: a mark, line, or stroke (as in a drawing or engraving) made usually by a single movement of a pen, pencil, etc.

especially : one made in parallel with others to give the effect of shading

Dots, hatches, crosshatches, flowing lines, scribbles—use them all!

—Courtney Jordan

I continue to refine and tighten the drawing as I develop the form and color with overlapping hatches.

—Jill Bossert

Scientists have been unable to determine whether the hatches of the lower part of the drawing were done by a right- or left-handed person.

—Elian Peltier

[Adobe] Illustrator's new filters include Ink Pen, for creating organic-looking hatches …

—Mike Heck and Karen Mitchell

Synonyms of hatch

Verb (1)

• spawn
• sit
• brood
• lay
• incubate

Noun (2)

• door

Examples of hatch in a Sentence

Verb (1)

the mallards and geese have begun hatching in their nests down by the pond

Noun (2)

watertight hatches provided access through the ship's bulkheads

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Eggs hatch into aquatic mosquito larvae, known as wrigglers, then turn into pupae and emerge as flying adults. —Ryan Brennan april 30, Miami Herald, 30 Apr. 2026

At the time, his high school was on the brink of shutting down—but the then-teenager battened down the hatches, studied hard, and became class valedictorian. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026

Verb

However, after 28 years of conservation efforts, the first eaglet hatched without human intervention on Santa Cruz Island in 2006 — the first in over 50 years — and the population has grown since then, according to the National Park Service. —Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 29 Apr. 2026

Each year, Canada geese around the Independence Center mall lay eggs, and employees and customers watch and wait for fluffy goslings to hatch. —Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 28 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English hache, from Old English hæc; akin to Middle Dutch hecke trapdoor

Verb (1)

Middle English hacchen; akin to Middle High German hecken to mate

Verb (2)

Middle French hacher to chop, slice up, incise with fine lines, from Old French hachier — more at hash

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun (2)

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (3)

circa 1650, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing hatch

• count one's chickens (before they hatch)
• down the hatch
• escape hatch
• hatch a plot

Rhymes for hatch

• bache
• batch
• brach
• catch
• latch
• mache
• match
• patch
• rach
• scratch
• snatch
• tache

Kids Definition

hatch

1 of 5 noun

ˈhach 

1

: an opening in a deck, floor, or roof

2

: a small door or opening (as in an airplane)

3

: the covering for a hatch

hatch

2 of 5 verb

1

a

: to produce from eggs

the hen hatched chicks

b

: incubate sense 1

the hen hatched the eggs

2

a

: to emerge from an egg, pupa, or chrysalis

the chicks hatched today

b

: to give forth young

the eggs hatched today

3

: to bring into being : originate

especially : to organize or put together in secret

hatch a plot

hatch

3 of 5 noun

1

: an act or instance of hatching

2

: a brood of hatched young

hatch

4 of 5 verb

: to mark (as the shading in a picture) with hatching

hatch

5 of 5 noun

: a line, stroke, or mark made especially to produce hatching that gives the effect of shading

Etymology

Noun

Old English hæc "small door or opening"

Verb

Middle English hacchen "to cause to be born out of an egg"

Verb

Middle English hachen "to mark with a pattern of fine lines," from early French hacher "to inlay, chop up," derived from earlier hache "battle-ax"; of Germanic origin — related to hash entry 1, hatchet