from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Trench \Trench\, n. [OE. trenche, F. tranch['e]e. See {Trench},
v. t.]
1. A long, narrow cut in the earth; a ditch; as, a trench for
draining land. --Mortimer.
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2. An alley; a narrow path or walk cut through woods,
shrubbery, or the like. [Obs.]
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In a trench, forth in the park, goeth she.
--Chaucer.
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3. (Fort.) An excavation made during a siege, for the purpose
of covering the troops as they advance toward the besieged
place. The term includes the parallels and the approaches.
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{To open the trenches} (Mil.), to begin to dig or to form the
lines of approach.
{Trench cavalier} (Fort.), an elevation constructed (by a
besieger) of gabions, fascines, earth, and the like, about
half way up the glacis, in order to discover and enfilade
the covered way.
{Trench plow}, or {Trench plough}, a kind of plow for opening
land to a greater depth than that of common furrows.
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