sack

¹ American  

[sak] / sæk /

noun

1. a large bag of strong, coarsely woven material, as for grain, potatoes, or coal.

2. the amount a sack holds.

3. a bag.

   a sack of candy.

4. Informal. the sack, dismissal or discharge, as from a job.

   to get the sack.

5. Slang. the sack, bed, often as the site of sexual activity.

   It's past noon, but I bet that lazybones is still in the sack.

   If you want the relationship to be more than just a night in the sack, you have to work at it.

6. Also sacque

   1. a loose-fitting dress, as a gown with a Watteau back, especially one fashionable in the late 17th century and much of the 18th century.

   2. a loose-fitting coat, jacket, or cape.

7. Baseball. a base.

8. South Midland U.S. the udder of a cow.

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verb (used with object)

1. to put into a sack or sacks.

2. Football. to tackle (the quarterback) behind the line of scrimmage before the quarterback is able to throw a pass.

3. Informal. to dismiss or discharge, as from a job.

verb phrase

1. sack out to go to bed; fall asleep.

idioms

1. leave holding the sack. bag.

2. hit the sack, to go to bed; go to sleep.

   He never hits the sack before midnight.

sack ² American  

[sak] / sæk /

verb (used with object)

1. to pillage or loot after capture; plunder.

   to sack a city.

   Synonyms:

   despoil, spoil

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noun

1. the plundering of a captured place; pillage.

   the sack of Troy.

   Synonyms:

   ruin, destruction

sack ³ American  

[sak] / sæk /

noun

1. a strong light-colored wine formerly imported from Spain and the Canary Islands.

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sack ¹ British  

/ sæk /

noun

1. a large bag made of coarse cloth, thick paper, etc, used as a container

2. Also called: sackful.  the amount contained in a sack, sometimes used as a unit of measurement

3. 1. a woman's loose tube-shaped dress

   2. Also called: sacque.  a woman's full loose hip-length jacket, worn in the 18th and mid-20th centuries

4. short for rucksack

5. Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): bye.  cricket a run scored off a ball not struck by the batsman: allotted to the team as an extra and not to the individual batsman

6. informal dismissal from employment

7. a slang word for bed

8. slang to go to bed

9. uncouth

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verb

1. informal to dismiss from employment

2. to put into a sack or sacks

sack ² British  

/ sæk /

noun

1. the plundering of a place by an army or mob, usually involving destruction, slaughter, etc

2. American football a tackle on a quarterback which brings him down before he has passed the ball

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verb

1. (tr) to plunder and partially destroy (a place)

2. American football to tackle and bring down a quarterback before he has passed the ball

sack ³ British  

/ sæk /

noun

1. archaic any dry white wine formerly imported into Britain from SW Europe

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sack More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing sack

• get the ax (sack)
• hit the hay (sack)
• sad sack

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Related Words

See rob.

Regionalisms

See bag.

Other Word Forms

• sacker noun
• sacklike adjective

Etymology

Origin of sack¹

First recorded before 1000; 1940–45 sack ¹ for def. 5; Middle English noun sak, sak(k)e Old English sacc, from Latin saccus “bag, sack, sackcloth,” from Greek sákkos “bag made from goat hair, sieve, burlap, large cloak (as for a wedding dress),” from Semitic; compare Hebrew, Phoenician śaq “cloth made of hair, bag, mourning dress”

Origin of sack²

First recorded in 1540–50; from Middle French phrase mettre à sac “to put to pillage”; sac, in this sense from Italian sacco “looting, loot,” shortened form of saccomano, from Middle High German sakman “pillager” (conformed to sacco sack ¹ )

Origin of sack³

First recorded in 1525–35; from French ( vin ) sec “dry (wine),” from Latin siccus “dry”; cf. sec ¹

Explanation

A sack is a bag. In some parts of the country, store clerks put your stuff in a sack, but in other parts the same stuff goes in a bag. Sack is also an exciting verb. While a sack is often just a bag, as a verb it can do a lot more. A boss might sack, or fire, an employee who’s no longer needed. In American football, if you sack a quarterback, you tackle him. This comes from the other meaning of sack, which is to raid and plunder a town, like when the Visigoths sacked Rome. If someone says they’re going to hit the sack, don’t worry, they’re just going to bed.

Example Sentences

We looked at maps, got advice on where to go next and ate our sack lunches at a picnic table, marveling at those green slopes.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 10, 2026

One of several similar images, it illustrates an old Flemish proverb that can be politely translated as “Whoever holds a sack of gold will always have flatterers.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

Brady upped the ante after Sports Illustrated playfully asked how many WWE wrestlers it would take to sack him.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 20, 2026

Ratcliffe opted to given Erik ten Hag a new contract following United's FA Cup final victory over Manchester City in 2024 - only to sack him less than three months into the following season.

From BBC • Mar. 14, 2026

She was carrying a sack over her shoulder.

From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo

Related Words

• discharge
• dismiss
• expel
• fire
• terminate