post hole
1
2.8
- noun
- /poʊst hoʊl/
- To build the fence, we dug several post holes along the property line.
- post hole digger
- dig post holes
Examples
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When installing the sign, make sure to dig deep enough post holes to secure it firmly.
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Then the hole was enlarged using a hand post-hole auger to approximately 0.24 m in diameter and deepened to approximately 0.52 m.
Academic text (2009) -
And when you got that I need two rows of post holes running up both sides.
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For men who were digging post holes or building roadways and wanted to find work of greater humanitarian importance during the war, the opportunity was very attractive.
Academic text (1992) -
After a week of digging fence post holes (3 feet deep in clay) by hand, my husband said he was really, really proud of the fence.
Blog text (23) -
I say this as someone who has spent plenty of hours mowing lawns, chopping wood, digging post holes, weeding yards, fixing sinks, dragging trash bins, etc.
Blog text (4) -
The carpenter explained how to properly fill the post holes after installing the new fence.
Synonyms
How Deep
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a straightforward noun–noun compound whose meaning (‘a hole for a post’) is directly compositional from 'post' (an upright stake) + 'hole' (an opening). The same transparent construction is common cross-linguistically and follows a standard English compound pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both words will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Post hole comes from the simple image of a post and a hole. You dig a hole in the ground to put a post into it, so the term means 'a hole dug to hold a fence post'.