Trench

noun; verb (transitive and intransitive)

/trɛntʃ/

A long, narrow excavation dug in the ground by troops as a defensive position from which to fire upon the enemy — trench warfare became the defining feature of the Western Front in World War I.

✍️ Usage in a UPSC answer

Successive welfare schemes have too often been dug like defensive trenches around vested interests, entrenching subsidies that no government finds the political courage to fill in.

Synonyms

ditchfurrowchannelexcavationtroughmoat

Antonyms

moundembankmentridgerampart

🌱 Word Family

trenches (n pl), trenching (v pres.p), entrenched (adj), entrench (v), trench (v)

🔡 Root

Old French trenche = a cut, a slash; trenchier = to cut; from Latin truncāre = to cut off, maim

📜 Etymology

From Old French trenche ("a cut, a slash"), from trenchier ("to cut"), from Latin truncāre ("to cut off, maim"); the term "trench warfare" first appeared in the 1880s and became widely used from 1914.

🧠 Memory Hook

Hear "TRENCH" within enTRENCH: soldiers dug a trench to entrench themselves; the shared Latin root truncare ("to cut") reminds you a trench is a deep cut in the earth.

🏛️ History & Culture 📖 Seen in: World War I & Russian Revolution

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