2 N‑COUNT A trowel is a small tool with a flat blade that you use for spreading things such as cement and plaster onto walls and other surfaces.
tru|an|cy /truː ənsi/ N‑UNCOUNT Truancy is when children stay away from school without permission.
tru|ant /truː ənt/ (truants , truanting , truanted )
1 N‑COUNT A truant is a pupil who stays away from school without permission.
2 VERB If a pupil truants , he or she stays away from school without permission. □ [V ] In his fourth year he was truanting regularly. ● tru|ant|ing N‑UNCOUNT □ Truanting is a small but growing problem in primary schools.
3 PHRASE If a pupil plays truant , he or she stays away from school without permission. □ [+ from ] She was getting into trouble over playing truant from school.
truce /truː s/ (truces ) N‑COUNT A truce is an agreement between two people or groups of people to stop fighting or quarrelling for a short time. □ [+ between ] The fighting of recent days has given way to an uneasy truce between the two sides. □ Let's call a truce.
truck ◆◇◇ /trʌ k/ (trucks , trucking , trucked )
1 N‑COUNT A truck is a large vehicle that is used to transport goods by road. [mainly AM ] in BRIT, usually use lorry 2 N‑COUNT A truck is an open vehicle used for carrying goods on a railway. [BRIT ] □ They were loaded on the railway trucks to go to Liverpool. in AM, use freight car 3 VERB [usu passive] When something or someone is trucked somewhere, they are driven there in a lorry. [mainly AM ] □ [be V -ed prep/adv] The liquor was sold legally and trucked out of the state.
4 PHRASE If you say that you will have no truck with someone or something, you are refusing to be involved with them in any way. □ He would have no truck with deceit.
truck|er /trʌ kə r / (truckers ) N‑COUNT A trucker is someone who drives a truck as their job. [mainly AM ] in BRIT, use lorry driver
truck|ing /trʌ k I ŋ/ N‑UNCOUNT [usu N n] Trucking is the activity of transporting goods from one place to another using trucks. [mainly AM ] □ …the deregulation of the trucking industry. in BRIT, use haulage
truck|load /trʌ kloʊd/ (truckloads ) also truck load N‑COUNT A truckload of goods or people is the amount of them that a truck can carry. □ [+ of ] Truckloads of food, blankets, and other necessities reached the city.
tru ck stop (truck stops ) N‑COUNT A truck stop is a place where drivers, especially truck or lorry drivers, can stop, for example to rest or to get something to eat. [mainly AM ]
trucu|lent /trʌ kjʊlənt/ ADJ If you say that someone is truculent , you mean that they are bad-tempered and aggressive. ● trucu|lence /trʌ kjʊləns/ N‑UNCOUNT □ 'Your secretary said you'd be wanting a cleaner,' she announced with her usual truculence.
trudge /trʌ dʒ/ (trudges , trudging , trudged ) VERB If you trudge somewhere, you walk there slowly and with heavy steps, especially because you are tired or unhappy. □ [V prep/adv] We had to trudge up the track back to the station. ● N‑SING Trudge is also a noun. □ We were reluctant to start the long trudge home.
true ◆◆◇ /truː / (truer , truest )
1 ADJ If something is true , it is based on facts rather than being invented or imagined, and is accurate and reliable. □ Everything I had heard about him was true. □ The play follows the true story of the couple whose daughter has an extreme form of Asperger's syndrome.
2 ADJ [ADJ n] You use true to emphasize that a person or thing is sincere or genuine, often in contrast to something that is pretended or hidden. [EMPHASIS ] □ I allowed myself to acknowledge my true feelings. □ The true cost often differs from that which had first been projected.
3 ADJ [ADJ n] If you use true to describe something or someone, you approve of them because they have all the characteristics or qualities that such a person or thing typically has. [APPROVAL ] □ Maybe one day you'll find true love. □ The ability to work collaboratively is a true test of leadership. □ I think he's a true genius.
4 ADJ If you say that a fact is true of a particular person or situation, you mean that it is valid or relevant for them. □ [+ of ] The romance may have gone out of the marriage, but this is true of many couples. □ [+ for ] Expenditure on health has gone down, and the same is true for education.
5 ADJ If you are true to someone, you remain committed and loyal to them. If you are true to an idea or promise, you remain committed to it and continue to act according to it. □ [+ to ] Many consumers remain true to their favourite brand. □ [+ to ] India has remained true to democracy. □ [+ to ] She's been true to her word from day one.
6 PHRASE If a dream, wish, or prediction comes true , it actually happens. □ Owning a place of their own is a dream come true for the couple.
7 PHRASE If a general statement holds true in particular circumstances, or if your previous statement holds true in different circumstances, it is true or valid in those circumstances. [FORMAL ] □ [+ for ] One thing holds true for all of us: there are no rights without duties.
8 PHRASE If you say that something seems too good to be true , you are suspicious of it because it seems better than you had expected, and you think there may something wrong with it that you have not noticed. □ The celebrations were remarkably peaceful. Indeed, it seemed almost too good to be true.
9 PHRASE If you say that something such as a story or a film is true to life , you approve of it because it seems real. [APPROVAL ] □ The opening scenes of this movie are just not true to life.