Library / English Dictionary

TUNNEL

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: tunnelled    , tunnelling   

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A passageway through or under something, usually underground (especially one for trains or cars)

Example:

the tunnel reduced congestion at that intersection

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("tunnel" is a kind of...):

passageway (a passage between rooms or between buildings)

Meronyms (parts of "tunnel"):

shaft (a long vertical passage sunk into the earth, as for a mine or tunnel)

Domain category:

auto; automobile; car; machine; motorcar (a motor vehicle with four wheels; usually propelled by an internal combustion engine)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "tunnel"):

catacomb (an underground tunnel with recesses where bodies were buried (as in ancient Rome))

railroad tunnel (a tunnel through which the railroad track runs)

subway; underpass (an underground tunnel or passage enabling pedestrians to cross a road or railway)

Derivation:

tunnel (force a way through)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A hole made by an animal, usually for shelter

Synonyms:

burrow; tunnel

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Hypernyms ("tunnel" is a kind of...):

hole; hollow (a depression hollowed out of solid matter)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "tunnel"):

rabbit warren; warren (a series of connected underground tunnels occupied by rabbits)

Derivation:

tunnel (move through by or as by digging)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Force a way through

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "tunnel" is one way to...):

penetrate; perforate (pass into or through, often by overcoming resistance)

Sentence frames:

Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

tunnel (a passageway through or under something, usually underground (especially one for trains or cars))

Sense 2

Meaning:

Move through by or as by digging

Example:

burrow through the forest

Synonyms:

burrow; tunnel

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "tunnel" is one way to...):

cut into; delve; dig; turn over (turn up, loosen, or remove earth)

Sentence frame:

Something is ----ing PP

Derivation:

tunnel (a hole made by an animal, usually for shelter)

Credits

 Context examples: 

Sometimes, thickening from irritated tendons or other swelling narrows the tunnel and causes the nerve to be compressed.

(Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, NIH: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)

The cells forming the inner spiraled tunnel walls in the organ of Corti within the inner ear.

(Inner Rod of the Corti, NCI Thesaurus)

A flattened cell that rests on the tympanic lip of the spiral lamina (inner pillar cell) and on the basilar membrane (outer pillar cell), thereby forming the tunnel of the Organ of Corti.

(Pillar Cell, NCI Thesaurus)

Soon we were hemmed in with trees, which in places arched right over the roadway till we passed as through a tunnel; and again great frowning rocks guarded us boldly on either side.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

These channels were eroded into the rock below the ice, leaving distinctive formations known as "tunnel valleys."

(Massive East Antarctic Ice Sheet has history of instability, National Science Foundatio)

Other common phobias involve tunnels, highway driving, water, flying, animals and blood.

(Phobias, NIH: National Institute of Mental Health)

A channel or tunnel for the tensor tympani muscle within the tympanic cavity which acts to dull sounds.

(Canal for Tensor Tympani, NCI Thesaurus)

Last month, a scale model of the QueSST design completed testing in the 8-by 6-foot supersonic wind tunnel at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.

(NASA Completes Milestone Toward Quieter Supersonic X-Plane, NASA)

The ants use this motion to smack other arthropods, likely stunning them, smashing them against a tunnel wall or pushing them away.

(Dracula Ant Found to Be Fastest Creature on Earth, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Entrapment of the MEDIAN NERVE in the carpal tunnel, which is formed by the flexor retinaculum and the CARPAL BONES.

(Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)