sack

[ sak ]

/ sæk /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR sack ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a large bag of strong, coarsely woven material, as for grain, potatoes, or coal.

the amount a sack holds.

a bag: a sack of candy.

Slang. dismissal or discharge, as from a job: to get the sack.

Slang. bed: I bet he's still in the sack.

Also sacque.

a loose-fitting dress, as a gown with a Watteau back, especially one fashionable in the late 17th century and much of the 18th century.
a loose-fitting coat, jacket, or cape.

Baseball. a base.

South Midland U.S. the udder of a cow.

verb (used with object)

to put into a sack or sacks.

Football. to tackle (the quarterback) behind the line of scrimmage before the quarterback is able to throw a pass.

Slang. to dismiss or discharge, as from a job.

Verb Phrases

sack out, Slang. to go to bed; fall asleep.

Idioms for sack

hit the sack, Slang. to go to bed; go to sleep: He never hits the sack before midnight.

leave holding the sack. bag(def 28).

Origin of sack

before 1000; 1940–45 for def 5; Middle English sak (noun), sakken (v.), Old English sacc (noun) < Latin saccus bag, sackcloth < Greek sákkos < Semitic; compare Hebrew śaq

regional variation note for sack

See bag.

OTHER WORDS FROM sack

sack·like, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH sack

bag sac sack sacque

Words nearby sack

sacher-masoch, sachet, sachs, sachsen, sachsen-anhalt, sack, sack coat, sack dress, sack out, sack race, sack suit

Definition for sack (2 of 3)

sack ²

[ sak ]

/ sæk /

verb (used with object)

to pillage or loot after capture; plunder: to sack a city.

noun

the plundering of a captured place; pillage: the sack of Troy.

Origin of sack

1540–50; < Middle French phrase mettre à sac to put to pillage; sac, in this sense < Italian sacco looting, loot, shortened form of saccomano < Middle High German sakman pillager (conformed to sacco sack¹)

SYNONYMS FOR sack

1 spoil, despoil. See rob.

2 looting; destruction, ruin.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR sack ON THESAURUS.COM

Definition for sack (3 of 3)

sack ³

[ sak ]

/ sæk /

noun

a strong light-colored wine formerly imported from Spain and the Canary Islands.

Origin of sack

1525–35; < French ( vin) sec dry (wine) < Latin siccus dry; cf. sec¹

Example sentences from the Web for sack

Listen, I took a pretty hard shot to the sack with that crash.

The Walking Dead’s ‘Self Help’: A Grim Show Displays Its Comedy Streak, and A Major Reveal |Melissa Leon |November 10, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Last Sunday, he suited up for the Panthers, registering one sack and four tackles.

The NFL Is Full of Ray Rices |Robert Silverman |September 9, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
For a moment, I measured the risk of carrying that sack in public.

China’s Blood Ivory Bazaar |Brendon Hong |June 30, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
In order to prove his Ironborn status, he decides to lead a mini army to sack a depleted Winterfell when they least expect it.

Game of Thrones’ 8 Most Gruesome Deaths: From The Mountain’s Exploding Head Kill to Rat Torture |Marlow Stern |June 4, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

But time will remember him most vividly for coining the term “sack,” as in “sacking the quarterback,” which he did a lot.

The Deaths You Missed This Year |Malcolm Jones, Jimmy So, Michael Moynihan, Caitlin Dickson |December 30, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
At the mouth of the sack was a fortunate piece of cord, threaded through a circle of ragged holes.

The House by the River |A. P. Herbert
The sack (in specimens long kept in spirits) is dirty purple, and exteriorly between the scuta, dark purple.

A Monograph on the Sub-class Cirripedia (Volume 1 of 2) |Charles Darwin
Met him disguised as a common workman, and carrying a sack full of things.

Hard Cash |Charles Reade
Of course, those windows are not too far from the east wall, but that sack was right in the corner.

Warren Commission (7 of 26): Hearings Vol. VII (of 15) |The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
Then here be fritters in the court fashion, made with curds of sack posset, eggs and ale, and seasoned with nutmeg and pepper.

The Lancashire Witches |William Harrison Ainsworth

British Dictionary definitions for sack (1 of 3)

sack ¹

/ (sæk) /

noun

a large bag made of coarse cloth, thick paper, etc, used as a container

Also called: sackful the amount contained in a sack, sometimes used as a unit of measurement

a woman's loose tube-shaped dress
Also called: sacque a woman's full loose hip-length jacket, worn in the 18th and mid-20th centuries

short for rucksack

cricket, Australian a run scored off a ball not struck by the batsman: allotted to the team as an extra and not to the individual batsman Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): bye

the sack informal dismissal from employment

a slang word for bed

hit the sack slang to go to bed

rough as sacks NZ uncouth

verb (tr)

informal to dismiss from employment

to put into a sack or sacks

Derived forms of sack

sacklike, adjective

Word Origin for sack

Old English sacc, from Latin saccus bag, from Greek sakkos; related to Hebrew saq

British Dictionary definitions for sack (2 of 3)

sack ²

/ (sæk) /

noun

the plundering of a place by an army or mob, usually involving destruction, slaughter, etc

American football a tackle on a quarterback which brings him down before he has passed the ball

verb

(tr) to plunder and partially destroy (a place)

American football to tackle and bring down a quarterback before he has passed the ball

Derived forms of sack

sacker, noun

Word Origin for sack

C16: from French phrase mettre à sac, literally: to put (loot) in a sack, from Latin saccus sack 1

British Dictionary definitions for sack (3 of 3)

sack ³

/ (sæk) /

noun

archaic or trademark any dry white wine formerly imported into Britain from SW Europe

Word Origin for sack

C16 wyne seck, from French vin sec dry wine, from Latin siccus dry

Idioms and Phrases with sack

sack

In addition to the idiom beginning with sack

sack out

also see:

get the ax (sack)
hit the hay (sack)
sad sack

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

sack

noun

verb (used with object)

Verb Phrases

Idioms for sack

Origin of sack

regional variation note for sack

OTHER WORDS FROM sack

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH sack

Words nearby sack

Definition for sack (2 of 3)

verb (used with object)

noun

Origin of sack

SYNONYMS FOR sack

Definition for sack (3 of 3)

noun

Origin of sack

Example sentences from the Web for sack

British Dictionary definitions for sack (1 of 3)

noun

verb (tr)

Derived forms of sack

Word Origin for sack

British Dictionary definitions for sack (2 of 3)

noun

verb

Derived forms of sack

Word Origin for sack

British Dictionary definitions for sack (3 of 3)

noun

Word Origin for sack

Idioms and Phrases with sack

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

sack

noun

verb (used with object)

Verb Phrases

Idioms for sack

Origin of sack

regional variation note for sack

OTHER WORDS FROM sack

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH sack

Words nearby sack

Definition for sack (2 of 3)

verb (used with object)

noun

Origin of sack

SYNONYMS FOR sack

Definition for sack (3 of 3)

noun

Origin of sack

Words related to sack

Example sentences from the Web for sack

British Dictionary definitions for sack (1 of 3)

noun

verb (tr)

Derived forms of sack

Word Origin for sack

British Dictionary definitions for sack (2 of 3)

noun

verb

Derived forms of sack

Word Origin for sack

British Dictionary definitions for sack (3 of 3)

noun

Word Origin for sack

Idioms and Phrases with sack