TRUNK


Meaning of TRUNK in English

I. ˈtrəŋk noun

( -s )

Etymology: Middle English trunke, tronke chest, box, trunk, from Middle French tronc, from Latin truncus trunk of a tree, torso, shaft of a column

1.

a. : the main stem of a tree apart from its limbs and roots

b.

(1) : the human body apart from the head and appendages

(2) obsolete : body

c.

(1) : the thorax of an insect

(2) : the body of a fish from the operculum to the anus

d. : the central part of anything ; specifically : the shaft of a column or pilaster

2.

a.

(1) : a box or tank for keeping fish alive after they are caught

(2) dialect Britain : hoop net

b. obsolete : an ornamental chest (as a jewel casket) or a box (as a packing case) used for storage

c.

(1) : a piece of luggage that has a rigid frame, that is too large to be carried by hand, and that is used usually for transporting a traveler's clothing and other personal effects

(2) : the luggage compartment of an automobile

d.

(1) : a superstructure over a ship's hatches usually level with the poop deck, extending from one half to three quarters of the length of the ship, and having the main deck carried around it

(2) : the roof and upper part of the sides of the cabin of a boat projecting above the deck

(3) : the housing for a centerboard or rudder — see centerboard illustration

3.

a. : pipe , tube — compare trunk engine

b. : proboscis ; especially : the long muscular tubular extension of the nose of the elephant having the nostrils at its tip, serving as a prehensile organ either by coiling about an object to be seized or by the use of a small movable grasping process at its extremity, and used especially to convey food or drink to the mouth and as a weapon

c. or trunk glass obsolete : telescope

4. trunks plural

a. obsolete : trunk hose

b. archaic : breeches, knickerbockers

c. : men's shorts worn chiefly for sports

5.

a. : a passage or duct (as a wooden box conduit for carrying air to mine workings)

b. : launder

c. : wind-trunk

d.

(1) : a vertical shaft between decks (as a casing for access or ventilation)

(2) : a chute for loading or coaling a ship

6.

a. : the principal channel of a tributary system

nerve trunk

trunk of a river

trunk of an artery

b. : a circuit between two telephone exchanges or telephone switching devices for making connections between subscribers

c. : trunk line

II. adjective

1.

a. : of, relating to, or resembling a box or trunk

trunk lid

trunk load

trunk buoy

b. : used for storing luggage

trunk compartment

2.

a. : of or relating to the torso

determining trunk height … of these pygmies — American Anthropologist

b. : of or relating to a tree trunk

trunk borer

3. : having or consisting of a tube

trunk piston

4. : having, using, or controlling the flow in a duct or chute

trunk machine

5. : of, relating to, or constituting a primary segment or principal channel

trunk road

trunk stream

trunk pipeline

trunk wire of a teletype service

trunk airline

III. transitive verb

( -ed/-ing/-s )

: to enclose in a trunk or casing

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.