Tunnelers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A group of individuals who excavate underground passages for transportation, utilities, or other purposes
2. those who create pathways beneath the ground surface for various functions
3. specialists involved in the process of boring through earth to construct tunnels for diverse applications

Etymology: "Tunnelers" is simply the plural of "tunneler," a word formed in English by adding the agent suffix "-er" to "tunnel," meaning one who digs tunnels. The noun "tunnel" itself traces back to Medieval Latin "tunna," a cask or barrel, which passed into Old French as "tonel," a little barrel, and then into Middle English as "tonnel," describing a net or funnel-shaped trap for birds and fish. Its sense of a passage through earth developed from there, so the modern meaning is far removed from the original vessel. The suffix "-er" has its own long journey. It descends from Old English "-ere" and Old French "-ier," both ultimately from the Latin "-ārius," which marked a person connected with a trade or occupation. Attaching it to a verb or noun gave English speakers a straightforward way to name workers, so "tunneler" follows the same pattern as older words such as "baker" or "miner."

Synonyms: excavators, diggers