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View synonyms for

tunnel

[tuhn-l]

noun

  1. an underground passage.

  2. a passageway, as for trains or automobiles, through or under an obstruction, as a city, mountain, river, harbor, or the like.

  3. an approximately horizontal gallery or corridor in a mine.

  4. the burrow of an animal.

  5. Dialect.a funnel.



verb (used with object)

tunneled, tunneling , tunnelled, tunnelling .
  1. to construct a passageway through or under.

    to tunnel a mountain.

  2. to make or excavate (a tunnel or underground passage).

    to tunnel a passage under a river.

  3. to move or proceed by or as if by boring a tunnel.

    The river tunneled its way through the mountain.

  4. to pierce or hollow out, as with tunnels.

verb (used without object)

tunneled, tunneling , tunnelled, tunnelling .
  1. to make a tunnel or tunnels.

    to tunnel through the Alps.

tunnel

/ ˈʌə /

noun

  1. an underground passageway, esp one for trains or cars that passes under a mountain, river, or a congested urban area

  2. any passage or channel through or under something

  3. a dialect word for funnel

  4. obsoletethe flue of a chimney

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. (tr) to make or force (a way) through or under (something)

    to tunnel a hole in the wall

    to tunnel the cliff

  2. (intr; foll by through, under, etc) to make or force a way (through or under something)

    he tunnelled through the bracken

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • tunneler noun
  • tunnellike adjective
  • subtunnel noun
  • untunneled adjective
  • untunnelled adjective
  • ˈٳܲԲԱ noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of tunnel1

1400–50; late Middle English tonel (noun) < Middle French tonele, tonnelle funnel-shaped net, feminine of tonnel cask, diminutive of tonne tun; -elle
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Word History and Origins

Origin of tunnel1

C15: from Old French tonel cask, from tonne tun, from Medieval Latin tonna barrel, of Celtic origin
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Idioms and Phrases

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Hamas's military preparations took years - including extensive tunnel construction and the steady accumulation of rockets and weapons - but few analysts, regional actors, or even rival Palestinian factions foresaw the magnitude of the offensive.

From

But with consistent practices in organized team activities and minicamp, the coach said Johnston is “starting to come out of the other end of the tunnel.”

From

For the first time in a while, they could start to see light at the end of the pitching tunnel.

From

Between the six- and seven-mile marker, we ran through a tunnel that was filled with flashing red lights and bubble machines.

From

And I’ve been there so many times that I know that there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

From

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