n.
Pronunciation: ' tr ə ŋ k
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English trunke Anglo-French trunc, trunke, from Latin truncus trunk, torso
Date: 15th century
1 a : the main stem of a tree apart from limbs and roots ― called also bole b (1) : the human or animal body apart from the head and appendages : TORSO (2) : the thorax of an insect c : the central part of anything specifically : the shaft of a column or pilaster
2 a (1) : a large rigid piece of luggage used usually for transporting clothing and personal effects (2) : the luggage compartment of an automobile b (1) : a superstructure over a ship's hatches usually level with the poop deck (2) : the part of the cabin of a boat projecting above the deck (3) : the housing for a centerboard or rudder
3 : PROBOSCIS especially : the long muscular proboscis of the elephant
4 plural : men's shorts worn chiefly for sports <swimming trunk s >
5 a : a usually major channel or passage (as a chute or shaft) b : a circuit between two telephone exchanges for making connections between subscribers broadly : a usually electronic path over which information is transmitted (as between computer systems)
6 a : the principal channel or main body of a system or part that divides into branches <a nerve trunk > <the trunk of a river> b : TRUNK LINE
– trunk · ful \ ' tr ə nk- ˌ fu ̇ l \ noun