dugout

American  

[duhg-out] / ˈdʌgˌaʊt /

noun

• dugouts
  plural

1. a boat made by hollowing out a log.

2. Baseball. a roofed structure enclosed on three sides and with the fourth side open and facing the playing field, usually with the floor below ground level, where the players sit when not on the field.

3. a rough shelter or dwelling formed by an excavation in the ground, in the face of a bank, in the side of a hill, etc., especially one used by soldiers.

---

dugout British  

/ ˈdʌɡˌaʊt /

noun

1. a canoe made by hollowing out a log

2. military a covered excavation dug to provide shelter

3. slang a retired officer, former civil servant, etc, recalled to employment

4. (at a sports ground) the covered bench where managers, trainers, etc sit and players wait when not on the field

5. (in the Canadian prairies) a reservoir dug on a farm in which water from rain and snow is collected for use in irrigation, watering livestock, etc

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• dugouts
  plural

Etymology

Origin of dugout

1715–25, noun use of verb phrase dug out

Explanation

In baseball, a dugout is the area reserved for one team to sit while players wait for their turn at bat. Each team has its own dugout. A dugout is typically a low structure with a roof that's open at the front so the players can see the baseball field. One team's dugout is in the foul zone between third base and home plate, and the other's is between first base and home plate. Baseball dugouts are named for the original dugouts, temporary military trenches where troops shelter during battle. A boat made from a hollowed out log is another kind of dugout.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dugout dugouts

From the dugout in Chicago, Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol might have been the most impressed of all.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

That means they will all have a degree of uncertainty in the dugout, while Arsenal have the benefit of continuity as Mikel Arteta remains in charge.

From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026

Manager Dave Roberts embraced Blake Snell on the dugout steps.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

Later in the game, Cleveland’s José Ramírez was seen in the dugout apparently imitating Yan’s airborne style of rejoicing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

Unlike the Nhambiquara Indians, who had made the expedition’s original dugout canoes, the Cinta Larga Indians had never even seen a boat until they saw the Roosevelt-Rondon Expedition go by.

From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple

The four shelter in forest dugouts, hunting and gathering by day and telling stories at night.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

Instead, he has spent the last years in dugouts around Ukraine.

From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026

His face bore the extreme exhaustion typical of men who have spent too long in front-line dugouts.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 9, 2026

But over the last couple of years, as he watched the Dodgers from opposing dugouts, Snell had been intrigued with Miller’s high-octane stuff and tantalizing potential.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2025

In the harsh Russian winter, sometimes the pilots moved into dugouts, because it was warmer underground!

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

Related Words

• cave
• cellar