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Glite Dictionary
sand trap

sand trap

6 3.3
A shallow pit filled with sand that makes golf shots harder
  • noun
  • /sænd træp/
  • US
translation icon : trampa de arena
  • The course's challenging layout included a deep sand trap beside the 8th hole.
  • sand traps surrounding the green
  • sand trap on a golf

OK, Ruined a beautiful beach and could have been a golf course, could have could have been a could have been a great sand trap.

Examples

  • Instead, I hit it fat, and the ball overshot by a good ten feet and fell into a sand trap.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • It's like you're in a sand trap, right?

    Get on Up (2014)

  • So yes, it's a sand trap, but I knew that coming into it.

  • I told you it was a sand trap.

    Van Wilder: Freshman Year (2009)

  • I suppose you would be glad to escape from this sand trap.

    Five Graves to Cairo (1943)

  • Meanwhile, I'm two over and pulling out my hair from the sand trap.

    Blog text (10)

  • Many senior citizens play there because it's flat and has no sand traps or water hazards.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • All right, we can't go that way, that's a sand trap.

    The Pyramid (2014)

  • With fountains, natural obstacles, and sand traps decorating the course, Bluegrass Miniature Golf offers a fun and challenging game for children and adults alike.

    Blog text (20)

  • His ball landed in the sand trap, making it difficult for him to putt on the green.

Synonyms

bunker
vssand trap
  • Specialized
12 3.8

A hollow on a golf course filled with sand to make shots harder

is a plain description of a shallow sand pit rather than stressing player challenge
hazard
vssand trap
  • Jargon
12 6.9

A part of a golf course like sand or water that makes play harder

is the specific shallow sand pit form of that broader obstacle
trap
vssand trap
  • Specialized
7 6.7

A sand hollow on a golf course that makes shots difficult

is a descriptive phrase focusing on a shallow sand pit rather than naming

Surface Forms

sand trap singular
sand traps plural

Morphology

sand + trap

The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'sand' (sand) with 'trap' (a pit or hazard): a trap made of sand is naturally understood as a sand-filled pit on a golf course. This is a straightforward noun–noun composition that follows common cross-linguistic patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will likely infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The noun sand trap comes from a simple picture: a shallow hole of sand that is a trap for a golf ball, catching it and making the next shot difficult. That's why the phrase means the sandy hazard on a golf course.