1 thresh | Definition of thresh

thresh

verb
\ ˈthresh How to pronounce thresh (audio) , ˈthrash\
threshed; threshing; threshes

Definition of thresh

transitive verb

1 : to separate seed from (a harvested plant) mechanically also : to separate (seed) in this way
3 : to strike repeatedly

intransitive verb

1 : to thresh grain

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Examples of thresh in a Sentence

threshing and harvesting at the same time the poor dog threshed against his chain

Recent Examples on the Web

The hurricane with no name threshed across the Atlantic coast in mid-September 1713, ripping at tobacco crops and sending panicked colonists inland, where the storm's destructive power found them. oregonlive, "Hurricane’s Dorian’s beeline past North Carolina will leave wild horses to ride it out, ‘butt to the wind’," 5 Sep. 2019 The rice at the top of the stalks in the paddies was hard and yellow, ready to be cut, threshed and dried in the sun. New York Times, "The Schoolteacher and the Genocide," 8 Aug. 2019 Vintage tractors, trucks, cars and motorcycles will be on display, and there will be a Parade of Power, tractor pulls and demonstrations of threshing, horse plowing, butter churning, blacksmithing and more. Phil Marty, chicagotribune.com, "Hit a Wisconsin fest, watch a tug-of-war over the Mighty Mississippi and more Midwest events," 29 July 2019 Subrat Chandra Gayen, another resident of Joymoni, said nearly 80 percent of families have had to give up on rice farming, which once provided food and an income for most people in the area, including women who sowed, harvested, and threshed it. Manipadma Jena, The Christian Science Monitor, "With tides rising, Bangladeshi farmers turn to flood-resistant crabs," 19 Mar. 2018 In the San Joaquin Valley, beans are harvested by a machine called Big Bertha, which can pick and thresh fifty thousand pounds a day. Junot Díaz, The New Yorker, "The Hunt for Mexico’s Heirloom Beans," 17 Apr. 2018 Deuteronomy 25:4 prohibits the muzzling of an ox that is threshing. Karen Swallow Prior, Washington Post, "Fallen NFL star Michael Vick speaks at Liberty University about dog fighting and his faith," 29 Jan. 2018 Sometimes scenes of hunting, netting fish, herding and butchering animals, threshing grain and other farming activities were carved or painted directly onto tomb walls, as in the exquisite murals at the ancient burial grounds at Saqqara near Cairo. Salima Ikram, Smithsonian, "For Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs, Life Was a Banquet, But the Afterlife Was the Greatest Feast of All," 3 Feb. 2017 Collaborating with women farmers in Niger, Trimble designed a compact, solar-powered device that threshes and winnows pearl millet, allowing more daily meals to be produced without such a physical toll. National Geographic, "Thousands Submitted Ideas to Our ‘Chasing Genius’ Challenge. These 4 Won," 18 Sep. 2017

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

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First Known Use of thresh

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

History and Etymology for thresh

Middle English thresshen, from Old English threscan; akin to Old High German dreskan to thresh

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More Definitions for thresh

thresh

verb

English Language Learners Definition of thresh

: to separate the seeds of corn, wheat, etc., from the plant by using a special machine or tool

thresh

verb
\ ˈthrash How to pronounce thresh (audio) , ˈthresh\
threshed; threshing

Kids Definition of thresh

1 : to separate the seed from a harvested plant by beating threshing wheat

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More from Merriam-Webster on thresh

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with thresh

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for thresh

Spanish Central: Translation of thresh

Nglish: Translation of thresh for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of thresh for Arabic Speakers