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n. 1. A short wooden upright used in structural framing. 2. a. A piece of broad, heavy, roughly dressed timber with one face finished flat. b. A walkway over wet ground made by laying planks or dressed timbers over sills set directly on the ground. c. A short low bridge of similar construction. Also called puncheon bridge. 3. A punching, perforating, or stamping tool, especially one used by a goldsmith. [Middle English punchoun, from Anglo-Norman ponchon, punching or piercing tool, piercing weapon, vertical strut, from Vulgar Latin *pūnctiō, pūnctiōn-, from *pūnctiāre, to pierce, from Latin pūnctus, past participle of pungere, to prick; see peuk- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.]  (click for a larger image) puncheon1along the Twinway trail, a section of the Appalachian Trail, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
n. 1. A cask with a capacity of from 72 to 120 gallons (273 to 454 liters). 2. The amount of liquid contained in a puncheon. [Middle English punchoun, from Anglo-Norman ponchon, punching tool, cask (probably because the casks were inspected and marked with a punch); see PUNCHEON1.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
