oceanic trench

[ oh-shee-an-ik trench ]

/ ˌoʊ ʃiˈæn ɪk ˈtrɛntʃ /

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noun

a depression of significant depth in the ocean floor, usually about 2.0–2.5 miles (3–4 kilometers) deeper than the surface of the surrounding seafloor and about 30–60 miles (50–100 kilometers) wide, with a length that may span thousands of miles or kilometers: an integral element of plate tectonics.

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Also called o·cean trench [oh-shuhn trench], /ˈoʊ ʃən ˈtrɛntʃ/, deep-sea trench [deep-see-trench] /ˈdipˈsi ˈtrɛntʃ/ .

Origin of oceanic trench

First recorded in 1945–50

Words nearby oceanic trench

Oceanian, oceanic, oceanic crust, oceanicity, oceanic ridge, oceanic trench, Oceanid, ocean liner, ocean marine insurance, Ocean of Storms, oceanog.

How to use oceanic trench in a sentence

John Luther Adams lives up to the title of his composition, capturing an oceanic torrent of sound in an awe-inspiring performance.
The Best Albums of 2014|Ted Gioia|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
You don't bag something and leave it by the trench while you go back to the truck for your lunch.
The Real-Life Raiders of the Lost Ark|Alex Belth|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Early airpower theorists were not only repelled by trench warfare.
Why the U.S. Army Is Stuck in the 19th Century|Bill Sweetman|September 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The guys that I was partnering with early on wanted the logo to be a guy opening his trench coat.
The Movie Nudity Maestro: Jim McBride on 15 Years of Mr. Skin and That Scarlett Johansson Scene|Marlow Stern|August 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST

The goal was to get a human being to the bottom of the Mariana Trench for the first time since Cameron was a 5-year-old.
James Cameron Dives into the Ocean's Abyss|Andrew Romano|July 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
No word of the bombs and trench mortars I asked for six weeks ago, but the "bayonets" are coming in liberally now.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
I asked him if that amounted to one shell per yard and he said the whole length of the trench was less than 100 yards.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
The band took up a position in an old Spanish trench and played as the troops filed past along the beach.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
The Anzacs are very much depressed to hear they are to get no more bombs for their six Japanese trench mortars.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
On their march the Americans had to fight a hidden foe who slipped from trench to trench, or found safety in the woods.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman

British Dictionary definitions for oceanic trench

oceanic trench

noun

a long narrow steep-sided depression in the earth's oceanic crust, usually lying above a subduction zone

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