n.
Pronunciation: ' trench
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English trenche track cut through a wood, from Anglo-French, act of cutting, ditch, from trencher, trenchier to cut, probably from Vulgar Latin *trinicare to cut in three, from Latin trini three each ― more at TRINE
Date: 15th century
1 a : a long cut in the ground : DITCH especially : one used for military defense often with the excavated dirt thrown up in front b plural : a place, position, or level at which an activity is carried on in a manner likened to trench warfare ― often used in the phrase in the trenches <activists working in the trench es >
2 : a long, narrow, and usually steep-sided depression in the ocean floor ― compare TROUGH
3 : TRENCH COAT