trestle

noun

tres·​tle ˈtre-səl 

also

ˈtrə- 

variants or less commonly tressel

1

: a braced frame serving as a support

2

: horse sense 2b

3

: a braced framework of timbers, piles, or steelwork for carrying a road or railroad over a depression

Examples of trestle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Ties and rails were laid, tunnels were cut through the mountain walls, and trestles and bridges put in. —Mark Fischetti, Scientific American, 14 May 2024

Video shows part of the train trestle on the bridge collapsed while the vessel also unleashed an oil spill. —Li Cohen, CBS News, 17 May 2024

Photographer Warren Jenkins recently captured a Maryland Midland train crossing the trestle over Little Pipe Creek and Keymar Road. —Mary Ann Ashcraft, Baltimore Sun, 14 Apr. 2024

Among the worst floods was the deluge of 1908 that swept outhouses, sheds, livestock and railroad trestles downstream. —Hollace Ava Weiner, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English trestel, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *trastellum, from Latin transtillum, diminutive of transtrum traverse beam, from trans across — more at through entry 1

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing trestle

• trestle table

Kids Definition

trestle

noun

tres·​tle ˈtres-əl 

1

: a braced frame consisting usually of a horizontal piece with spreading legs at each end that supports something (as the top of a table)

2

: a structure of timbers or steel for carrying a road or railroad over a valley