tunnel
Americannoun
-
an underground passage.
-
a passageway, as for trains or automobiles, through or under an obstruction, as a city, mountain, river, harbor, or the like.
-
an approximately horizontal gallery or corridor in a mine.
-
the burrow of an animal.
-
Dialect. a funnel.
verb (used with object)
-
to construct a passageway through or under.
to tunnel a mountain.
-
to make or excavate (a tunnel or underground passage).
to tunnel a passage under a river.
-
to move or proceed by or as if by boring a tunnel.
The river tunneled its way through the mountain.
-
to pierce or hollow out, as with tunnels.
verb (used without object)
noun
-
an underground passageway, esp one for trains or cars that passes under a mountain, river, or a congested urban area
-
any passage or channel through or under something
-
a dialect word for funnel
-
obsolete the flue of a chimney
verb
-
(tr) to make or force (a way) through or under (something)
to tunnel a hole in the wall
to tunnel the cliff
-
(intr; foll by through, under, etc) to make or force a way (through or under something)
he tunnelled through the bracken
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
untunnelledadjective
-
untunneledadjective
-
tunnelernoun
-
tunnellernoun
-
tunnellikeadjective
-
subtunnelnoun
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
have tunneledperfect
-
has tunnelledperfect 3rd person singular
-
have tunnelledperfect
-
has tunneledperfect 3rd person singular
-
has been tunnelingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
are tunnelingprogressive
-
is tunnelingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
are tunnellingprogressive
-
am tunnelingprogressive 1st person singular
-
is tunnellingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
have been tunnellingperfect progressive
-
am tunnellingprogressive 1st person singular
-
has been tunnellingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
have been tunnelingperfect progressive
-
tunnellingparticiple
-
tunnelssingular 3rd person
-
tunnelingparticiple
Past
-
had tunnelledperfect
-
had tunneledperfect
-
was tunnelingprogressive singular
-
were tunnelingprogressive plural
-
was tunnellingprogressive singular
-
had been tunnellingperfect progressive
-
tunnelledparticiple
-
tunneledsimple
-
were tunnellingprogressive plural
-
had been tunnelingperfect progressive
-
tunneledparticiple
-
tunnelledsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of tunnel
1400–50; late Middle English tonel (noun) < Middle French tonele, tonnelle funnel-shaped net, feminine of tonnel cask, diminutive of tonne tun; see -elle
Explanation
A tunnel is a passage that runs underground or through something, like a train tunnel that cuts through a mountain. Some theme parks have networks of underground tunnels so that employees can move around out of sight of visitors. Some tunnels, like New York's Lincoln Tunnel and the Holland Tunnel, which connect New York City to New Jersey, are large and solid enough to drive cars through. Others are much smaller, like the tunnels small animals dig through snow or soil for safety and shelter. As a verb, tunnel means "dig a tunnel" or "force through," the way your neighborhood groundhog tunnels under your dad's vegetable garden.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Called the Bergen Loop, the project is nowhere close to fruition, with the Hudson Tunnel project and various other elements of the program taking precedence.
From Salon • Jun. 3, 2026
Rail bosses hope the £23m electrification upgrade project can ultimately improve train reliability and reduce the number of power failures and maintenance closures inside the Severn Tunnel .
From BBC • May 22, 2026
But now there’s finally some light at the end of the Lincoln Tunnel.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026
For comparison, the Gotthard Base Tunnel, the world's longest railway tunnel, stretches 54 kilometers.
From Science Daily • Mar. 3, 2026
I look over to where The World at the End of the Tunnel lies on the table next to the bed, untouched.
From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
