bunker

American  

[buhng-ker] / ˈbʌŋ kər /

noun

1. a large bin or receptacle; a fixed chest or box.

   a coal bunker.

2. a fortification set mostly below the surface of the ground with overhead protection provided by logs and earth or by concrete and fitted with openings through which guns may be fired.

3. Golf. any obstacle, as a sand trap or mound of dirt, constituting a hazard.

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verb (used with object)

1. Nautical.

   1. to provide fuel for (a vessel).

   2. to convey (bulk cargo, except grain) from a vessel to an adjacent storehouse.

2. Golf. to hit (a ball) into a bunker.

3. to equip with or as if with bunkers.

   to bunker an army's defenses.

bunker British  

/ ˈbʌŋkə /

noun

1. a large storage container or tank, as for coal

2. Also called (esp US and Canadian): sand trap.  an obstacle on a golf course, usually a sand-filled hollow bordered by a ridge

3. an underground shelter, often of reinforced concrete and with a bank and embrasures for guns above ground

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verb

1. (tr) golf

   1. to drive (the ball) into a bunker

   2. (passive) to have one's ball trapped in a bunker

2. (tr) nautical

   1. to fuel (a ship)

   2. to transfer (cargo) from a ship to a storehouse

Etymology

Origin of bunker

First recorded in 1750–60; earlier bonkar ( Scots ) “box, chest, serving also as a seat,” of obscure origin

Example Sentences

Suddenly, a well-raked bunker wasn’t just a nice thing to have.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

Costs of a new bunker can easily run $10 to $20 a square foot, or $10,000 to $20,000 for a typical bunker.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

The price of the bunker fuel that powers ships nearly doubled after the war broke out, peaking at $1,053 per metric tonne on March 20.

From Barron's • Mar. 31, 2026

“In my initial pitch, I told people, ‘The second season is going to end with the bunker failing and the collapse of the whole infrastructure,’” creator Dan Fogelman says.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

Mark’s head pounded with pain, along with the rest of his body, after the scrum in the bunker hallway.

From "The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin)" by James Dashner

Related Words

• dugout
• fortification
• shelter