noun / verb
tunnel
TUN-uhl/ˈtʌnl/
An underground or enclosed passage, or the act of making one.
The railway tunnel recedes through the mountain's solid rock.
Etymology
The diminutive of “cask” first named a funnel-shaped bird net. Its English meaning shifted to “tube” or “pipe,” then to an underground passage.
In context
it led through the underwater tunnel and was tied to a piece of wood in the inner cave
More examples
- Workers tunnel through solid rock to extend the subway.
- Moles tunnel under the lawn in search of food.
- A short tunnel connects the hospital's two main buildings.
Forms
tunnel · tunnels · tunneled · tunneling
tunneler noun — A person who digs underground passages.