fire trench
- noun
- /ˈfaɪər trɛnʧ/
- Specialized
:
trinchera de fuego
- He peeked over the edge of the fire trench to assess the battlefield and plan their next move.
Examples
-
Constructing a well-designed fire trench was crucial for their safety during the intense gunfire.
-
We finally arrived at the main firing trench, the eight-foot-deep hole in the ground that was home.
Fiction book (1994) -
In the Commons, a young face like Lt. Dobie, above, becomes a doctor's son, Elizabeth Dobie's older brother, a Marlborough School student, just twenty years old when he "went out to inspect the wire in front of the fire trench," and died.
Blog text (23) -
The soldiers took cover in the fire trench, ready to return fire at the approaching enemy.
Synonyms
A narrow ditch in the ground soldiers use for shelter from enemy fire
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'fire' (the act of shooting) modifying 'trench' (a ditch) yields a trench used for firing. This noun‑noun purpose construction is a common and predictable pattern in English (and in many other languages), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the meaning.
Etymology
The noun fire trench comes from soldiers digging a low trench where they could fire their guns while staying under cover. That's why fire trench means 'a trench made so soldiers can shoot while protected'.
