BLENCHING

Verb

blenching

present participle of blench

Source: Wiktionary

BLENCH

Blench, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Blenched; p. pr. & vb. n. Blenching.] Etym: [OE. blenchen to blench, elude, deceive, AS. blencan to deceive; akin to Icel. blekkja to impose upon. Prop. a causative of blink to make to wink, to deceive. See Blink, and cf. 3d Blanch.]

1. To shrink; to start back; to draw back, from lack of courage or resolution; to flinch; to quail. Blench not at thy chosen lot. Bryant. This painful, heroic task he undertook, and never blenched from its fulfillment. Jeffrey.

2. To fly off; to turn aside. [Obs.] Though sometimes you do blench from this to that. Shak.

Blench, v. t.

1. To baffle; to disconcert; to turn away; -- also, to obstruct; to hinder. [Obs.] Ye should have somewhat blenched him therewith, yet he might and would of likelihood have gone further. Sir T. More.

2. To draw back from; to deny from fear. [Obs.] He now blenched what before he affirmed. Evelyn.

Blench, n.

Definition: A looking aside or askance. [Obs.] These blenches gave my heart another youth. Shak.

Blench, v. i. & t. Etym: [See 1st Blanch.]

Definition: To grow or make pale. Barbour.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition