trench
noun
a long, narrow excavation in the ground, the earth from which is thrown up in front to serve as a shelter from enemy fire or attack.
trench
1 American
[trench]
/ trɛntʃ /
noun
-
trenches
plural
-
Fortification. a long, narrow excavation in the ground, the earth from which is thrown up in front to serve as a shelter from enemy fire or attack.
-
trenches, a system of such excavations, with their embankments, etc.
-
a deep furrow, ditch, or cut.
-
Oceanography. a long, steep-sided, narrow depression in the ocean floor.
verb (used with object)
-
trenches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
trenched,
past participle, past
-
trenching
present participle
-
to surround or fortify with trenches; entrench.
-
to cut a trench in.
-
to set or place in a trench.
-
to form (a furrow, ditch, etc.) by cutting into or through something.
-
to make a cut in; cut into; carve.
verb (used without object)
-
trenches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
trenched,
past participle, past
-
trenching
present participle
verb phrase
Trench
2
American
[trench]
/ trɛntʃ /
noun
trench
British
/ trɛntʃ /
noun
-
a deep ditch or furrow
-
a ditch dug as a fortification, having a parapet of the excavated earth
verb
-
to make a trench in (a place)
-
(tr) to fortify with a trench or trenches
-
to slash or be slashed
-
(intr; foll by on or upon) to encroach or verge
trench
Scientific
/ trĕnch /
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
trenchsimple
-
trenchessimple
-
have trenchedperfect
-
has trenchedperfect
-
am trenchingprogressive
-
are trenchingprogressive
-
is trenchingprogressive
-
have been trenchingperfect progressive
-
has been trenchingperfect progressive
Past
-
trenchedsimple
-
had trenchedperfect
-
was trenchingprogressive
-
were trenchingprogressive
-
had been trenchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of trench
1350–1400; Middle English trenche path made by cutting < Old French: act of cutting, a cut, derivative of trenchier to cut < Vulgar Latin *trincāre , for Latin truncāre to lop; see truncate
Explanation
A trench is a deep and narrow hole, or ditch, in the ground, like the kind soldiers on frontlines might dig to give themselves shelter from the enemy. A natural trench may also be a deep hole on the bottom of the ocean. The verb trench means to dig or to cut into, but you will most often hear the word as a noun, particularly relating to soldiers. The phrase trench warfare became popular around World War I, when technological advances in weapons changed the way that wars were fought. Today, you may have even own a trench coat, a kind of raincoat first worn by soldiers.
Vocabulary lists containing trench
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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.
See Examples For:
At the trench assault in Indonesia, soldiers said their Stryker armored vehicle had been outfitted with a Starshield terminal—SpaceX’s military version of its Starlink satellite internet service—just days before departing for the drills.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
The kind of groove your tires make driving to Big Bear in December without chains: an icy trench filled with frustration, exhaustion and everyday sludge.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
The scene where Harris approached a captured bug, rocking an ankle-length black trench coat with his blonde hair in a close crew cut, was the closest “Troopers” came to clubbing the audience in the ribs.
From Salon ● Sep. 9, 2026
"I’ve always felt supported from day one and it’s a story that keeps going," she told BFM TV, wearing black sunglasses and a beige trench coat.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
Even if you’re a kid who speaks Italian and looks like the other kids in town and could carry groceries or dig a trench or something, make mug rugs, I dunno—they won’t let you.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
GE Vernova said Wednesday the deal for Trench Group, which it is buying from investment-firm Triton Partners, will further enable it to serve fast-growing demand for grid equipment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026
The second encounter occurred during a 2024 expedition to the Tonga Trench aboard the R/V Dagon as part of the Inkfish Open Ocean Expedition, led by scientists from the Minderoo-UWA Deep-Sea Research Center.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 8, 2026
The Cotabato Trench, which lies as close as 50 kilometres off Mindanao, is the site of frequent seismic activity, including a "swarm" of thousands of mostly small tremors recorded in January.
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
Monday's quake was caused by a movement on the Cotabato Trench, off the country's southern tip.
From BBC ● Jun. 9, 2026
Trench warfare was not what eager volunteers had expected when they signed up to fight on the Western Front.
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
She claims concrete foundations and trenches for access roads have prevented rainwater from draining towards the sea.
From Barron's ● Oct. 25, 2026
Especially if they’ve spent an untold number of years in the comedy trenches.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
Through those storms, Nigel has been there in the trenches.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Many employers now expect managers to do less coordinating between departments, and to spend more time in the trenches building products or generating revenue themselves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
He has had the bounce knocked out of him since he has been in the trenches and wants to get on good terms with us.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
After clearing swaths of torched aloe plants, he trenched in about 500 native plants that he said “will look spectacular in a few years.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2025
Olson, even though it trenched upon the president’s executive authority, concluding that the statute did not unduly limit the president’s power because the imposition was slight.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 12, 2018
And he was as equally unhappy during construction, when the company trenched up his manicured yard to run the pipeline 60 feet from the front door of his family’s 5-year-old brick home.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 29, 2017
Technically, the ditches are considered Oakmont’s only water hazards, even if the fast-moving groundwater rarely remains in the trenched channels long enough to puddle.
From New York Times ● Jun. 11, 2016
Many of the fair’s fifty-seven miles of roadway were still either submerged or coated with mud, and others had been gouged and trenched by vehicles that had used the roads while they were still sodden.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
Amy Bodek, the county’s regional planning director, recently warned Edison that a government ordinance protects oak trees and that “utility trenching is not exempt from these requirements.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2026
The developer’s footprint proposes excavation and trenching over identified Indigenous Traditional Cultural Properties, historic and archaeological resources and access to exercise ceremonial practices and treaty-gathering rights.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 25, 2022
They were used to using machinery and trenching and those skills were transferrable to cemeteries.
From BBC ● Jan. 26, 2022
“He started trenching, picking, and ordered up drilling,” said Mr. Kabongo.
From New York Times ● Dec. 7, 2021
The rain quickly went from a sprinkle to a downpour, thundering against the leaves and trenching water through the soil.
From "Endangered" by Eliot Schrefer
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