ˈtʌnl n. & v. --n. 1 an
artificial underground passage
through a
hill or
under a road or
river etc.,
esp.
for a
railway or road to pass through, or in a mine. 2 an underground passage dug by a burrowing
animal. 3 a prolonged
period of
difficulty or suffering (esp. in metaphors, e.g.
the end of the tunnel). 4 a
tube containing a
propeller shaft etc. --v. (tunnelled, tunnelling; US tunneled, tunneling) 1 intr. (foll. by through,
into, etc.)
make a tunnel through (a hill etc.). 2 tr. make (one's way) by tunnelling. 3 intr.
Physics pass through a
potential barrier. øtunnel
diode Electronics a two-terminal
semiconductor diode using tunnelling electrons to
perform high-speed switching operations. tunnel-kiln a
kiln in
which ceramic ware is carried on trucks
along a continuously-heated passage. tunnel-net a fishing-net
wide at the
mouth and narrow at the
other end. tunnel
vision 1 vision
that is
defective in
not adequately including objects
away from the
centre of the
field of
view. 2 colloq.
inability to
grasp the wider implications of a
situation. øøtunneller n. [ME f. OF tonel dimin. of
tonne TUN]
