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trou-de-loup

American

[trood-l-oo] / ˌtrud lˈu /

noun

Military.

a conical or pyramidal pit with a pointed stake fixed vertically in the center, rows of which are dug in front of a fortification to hinder an enemy's approach, formerly used chiefly against cavalry.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

trous-de-loup

plural

Etymology

Origin of trou-de-loup

1780–90; < French: literally, wolf hole

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.