trunk

American  

[truhngk] / trʌŋk /

noun

• trunks
  plural

1. the main stem of a tree, as distinct from the branches and roots.

2. a large, sturdy box or chest for holding or transporting clothes, personal effects, or other articles.

3. a large compartment, usually in the rear of an automobile, in which luggage, a spare tire, and other articles may be kept.

4. the body of a person or an animal excluding the head and limbs; torso.

5. Ichthyology. the part of a fish between the head and the anus.

6. Architecture.

   1. the shaft of a column.

   2. the dado or die of a pedestal.

7. the main channel, artery, or line in a river, railroad, highway, canal, or other tributary system.

8. Telephony, Telegraphy.

   1. a telephone line or channel between two central offices or switching devices that is used in providing telephone connections between subscribers generally.

   2. a telegraph line or channel between two main or central offices.

9. Anatomy. the main body of an artery, nerve, or the like, as distinct from its branches.

10. trunks,

    1. brief shorts, loose-fitting or tight, worn by men chiefly for boxing, swimming, and track.

    2. Obsolete. trunk hose.

11. the long, flexible, cylindrical nasal appendage of the elephant.

12. Nautical.

    1. a large enclosed passage through the decks or bulkheads of a vessel, for cooling, ventilation, or the like.

    2. any of various watertight casings in a vessel, as the vertical one above the slot for a centerboard in the bottom of a boat.

13. a conduit; shaft; chute.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or noting a main channel or line, as of a railroad or river.

trunk British  

/ trʌŋk /

noun

1. the main stem of a tree, usually thick and upright, covered with bark and having branches at some distance from the ground

2. a large strong case or box used to contain clothes and other personal effects when travelling and for storage

3. anatomy the body excluding the head, neck, and limbs; torso

4. the elongated prehensile nasal part of an elephant; proboscis

5. Also called: boot. an enclosed compartment of a car for holding luggage, etc, usually at the rear

6. anatomy the main stem of a nerve, blood vessel, etc

7. nautical a watertight boxlike cover within a vessel with its top above the waterline, such as one used to enclose a centreboard

8. an enclosed duct or passageway for ventilation, etc

9. (modifier) of or relating to a main road, railway, etc, in a network

   a trunk line

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subtrunk
  noun
• trunkful
  noun
• trunkless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• trunks
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of trunk

1400–50; late Middle English trunke < Latin truncus stem, trunk, stump, noun use of truncus lopped

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Explanation

The noun trunk refers to the main stem of a tree. If you want to make maple syrup, you need to tap the trunk of the maple tree and collect the tree's sap, which can then be boiled into a sticky syrup. The torso of the human body, from the neck to the groin — but not including the head, neck, arms, or legs — is sometimes referred to as the trunk. If you have hives on your trunk, you probably itch on your back, chest and abdomen. The word trunk comes from the Old French word tronc, which referred to the trunk of a tree or a headless body.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

trunk trunks

Once on the jail grounds, prosecutors claimed, Meiser hid the canisters in the trunk of a sheriff’s patrol car.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026

For most of the 20th century, the model of human origins was a tree: with the trunk dividing into branches, and then twigs.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 5, 2026

Every songwriter has a trunk, and the trunk is full of songs that got tossed out of the show or were passed over when they were submitted or may have just not been finished.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026

Zoe Gauntlett, whose business, Untold Luxury Group, uses trunk shows and personal shoppers to connect luxury brands with customers, said that group shopping can often inspire impulse buying.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Finally, I walked up close and put my hand on the trunk.

From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff

This is particularly noticeable near the bases of trees growing on mountain slopes, where trunks often need to curve to maintain an upright position.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 1, 2026

Describing black poplars as "Lord of the Rings" looking trees with "great gnarled trunks", she said they support other wildlife, including the poplar hornet moth.

From BBC ● Oct. 24, 2026

Water difficulties are forcing many Cubans to haul the precious resource for long distances, transporting it via wheelbarrows, bicycles, car trunks and even horse-drawn carts.

From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026

In Long Beach, cars lined up Saturday at a Peninsula parking lot as fire department workers loaded sandbags into trunks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026

Among them were the mighty water monsters, giant lizards whose toes were as thick as the trunks of fully grown pine trees.

From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young

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Related Words

• bag
• chest
• coffin
• crate
• locker
• luggage
• suitcase

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