tunnel
(tʌnəl )
Word forms: tunnels , tunnelling , tunnelled regional note: in AM, use tunneling, tunneled
1. countable noun B1+
A tunnel is a long passage which has been made under the ground, usually through a hill or under the sea.
...two new railway tunnels through the Alps. [+ through]
...the motorway tunnels under the Hudson river.
Synonyms: passage, underpass, passageway, subway
2. verb B2 [Also VERB]
To tunnel somewhere means to make a tunnel there.
The rebels tunnelled out of a maximum security jail. [VERB preposition/adverb]
The caterpillars tunnel into the fruit to grow and mature. [VERB preposition/adverb]
Synonyms: dig, dig your way, burrow, mine
3. See also wind tunnel
4. light at the end of the tunnel phrase
When you talk about the light at the end of the tunnel, you are referring to the end of the difficult or unpleasant situation that you are in at the moment.
All I can do is tell her to hold on, that there's light at the end of the tunnel.
Image of tunnel
© Real PIX, Shutterstock
Idioms:
the light at the end of the tunnel
something which gives you hope about the future and for the end of a difficult or unpleasant situation
After horrific times we are seeing light at the end of the tunnel.
Easy Learning Idioms Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
have tunnel vision
to focus all your energy and skill on the task which is most important to you and ignore things that other people might consider important
They always say that you have to have tunnel vision to be a champion. You can't have any outside distractions at all.
Easy Learning Idioms Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Collocations:
dark tunnel escape tunnel underground tunnel underwater tunnel
I needed a torch for this walk, as the rail path goes through a long, dark tunnel.
The Sun (2016)
It's like walking through a dark tunnel at times.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
There is no light at the end of this dark, dark tunnel.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
He had been in a group digging an escape tunnel when the officer in front of him accidentally hit a live cable.
EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER: A Journey Through the Science of Feelings (2005)
As for security, a panic room and escape tunnels can give ease of mind.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
It was his slight miscalculation that resulted in the escape tunnel being too short.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
There's no door; instead, you enter through an underground tunnel.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
It's a really interesting place, with a network of underground tunnels built in medieval times.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Cities would flood as pumps keeping underground tunnels dry gradually fail.
The Sun (2008)
How do you end up in a cave, cut offfrom the rest of humanity by six kilometres of difficult underwater tunnel, listening to things that go bump in the night?
Times, Sunday Times
If something goes wrong 10 kilometres down an underwater tunnel, you usually have until your air runs out to find a solution or make your peace.
Times, Sunday Times
He also tweeted about the possibility of inserting a nylon tube into the cave and inflating it to create an underwater tunnel.
The Sun
The 27-hole course will be set on three islands, linked by an underwater tunnel, complete with undersea club house.
The Sun
At the time of its construction it was the longest underwater tunnel in the world, a title it held for 24 years.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
Translations:
Chinese: 隧道, 挖掘隧道
Japanese: トンネル, トンネルを掘る
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