trough
Use Trough in a sentence
noun
1.
a long, narrow, open receptacle, usually boxlike in shape, used chiefly to hold water or food for animals.
2.
any of several similarly shaped receptacles used for various commercial or household purposes.
3.
a channel or conduit for conveying water, as a gutter under the eaves of a building for carrying away rain water.
4.
any long depression or hollow, as between two ridges or waves.
5.
Oceanography. a long, wide, and deep depression in the ocean floor having gently sloping sides, wider and shallower than a trench. Compare trench ( def 4 ).
Origin:
before 900; Middle English; Old English trōh; cognate with Dutch, German, Old Norse trog
before 900; Middle English; Old English trōh; cognate with Dutch, German, Old Norse trog
Related forms
trough·like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To trough
00:10
Trough
is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
| the offspring of a zebra and a donkey. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
trough (trɒf) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a narrow open container, esp one in which food or water for animals is put |
| 2. | a narrow channel, gutter, or gulley |
| 3. | a narrow depression either in the land surface, ocean bed, or between two successive waves |
| 4. | meteorol Compare ridge an elongated area of low pressure, esp an extension of a depression |
| 5. | a single or temporary low point; depression |
| 6. | physics the portion of a wave, such as a light wave, in which the amplitude lies below its average value |
| 7. | economics the lowest point or most depressed stage of the trade cycle |
| —vb | |
| 8. | informal (intr) to eat, consume, or take greedily |
| [Old English trōh; related to Old Saxon, Old Norse trog trough, Dutch trügge ladle] | |
| 'troughlike | |
| —adj | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
trough
O.E. trog, from P.Gmc. *trugoz (cf. O.Fris., O.S., O.N. trog, M.Du. troch, Du. trog, O.H.G. troc, Ger. trog), perhaps ultimately from PIE *drukos, from base *dru- "wood, tree" (see tree). Originally pronounced in Eng. with a hard -gh- (as in Scottish loch); pronunciation shifted
to -f-, but spelling remained.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
trough (trôf) Pronunciation Key
|
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Example sentences
Our health care system is too much of a pig trough for insurance companies, for-profit hospitals, and certain types of doctors.
When the trough is full, its balance point is again at the center.
The fountain's copper back and water trough define the smooth stucco wall.
The skipper was racing the engine full throttle, but the swells kept drawing us back into their trough.
Nearby Words
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