Sack

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /sæk/
• Rhymes: -æk
• Homophones: sac, SAC

From Middle English sak ("bag, sackcloth"), from Old English sacc ("sack, bag") and Old English sæcc ("sackcloth, sacking"); both from Proto-Germanic *sakkuz ("sack"), from Latin saccus ("large bag"), from Ancient Greek σάκκος (sákkos, "bag of coarse cloth"), from Phoenician, Ancient Egyptian 𓆷𓈎𓄜 (sAq, "sack"). Cognate with Dutch zak, German Sack, Swedish säck, Hebrew שַׂק (śaq, ""), Akkadian 𒆭𒊓.

Full definition of sack

Noun

1. A bag; especially a large bag of strong, coarse material for storage and handling of various commodities, such as potatoes, coal, coffee; or, a bag with handles used at a supermarket, a grocery sack; or, a small bag for small items, a satchel.
2. The amount a sack holds; also, an archaic or historical measure of varying capacity, depending on commodity type and according to local usage; an old English measure of weight, usually of wool, equal to 13 stone (182 pounds), or in other sources, 26 stone (364 pounds).
• The American sack of salt is 215 pounds; the sack of wheat, two bushels. — McElrath.
• 1843, The Penny Cyclopaedia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, Vol. 27, page 202Seven pounds make a clove, 2 cloves a stone, 2 stone a tod, 6 1/2 tods a wey, 2 weys a sack, 12 sacks a last. ... It is to be observed here that a sack is 13 tods, and a tod 28 pounds, so that the sack is 364 pounds.
• 1882, Thorold Rogers, A History of Agriculture and Prices in England, Volume 4, page 209Generally, however, the stone or petra, almost always of 14 lbs., is used, the tod of 28 lbs., and the sack of thirteen stone.
3. (uncountable) The plunder and pillaging of a captured town or city.The sack of Rome.
4. (uncountable) Loot or booty obtained by pillage.
5. (American football) A successful tackle of the quarterback. See verb sense³ below.
6. (baseball) One of the square bases anchored at first base, second base, or third base.He twisted his ankle sliding into the sack at second.
7. (informal) Dismissal from employment, or discharge from a position, usually as give (someone) the sack or get the sack. See verb sense⁴ below.The boss is gonna give her the sack today.He got the sack for being late all the time.
8. (colloquial, US) Bed; usually as hit the sack or in the sack. See also sack out.
9. (dated) (also sacque) A kind of loose-fitting gown or dress with sleeves which hangs from the shoulders, such as a gown with a 1700-1750_in_fashion#Women.27s_fashion or , fashionable in the late 17th to 18th century; or, formerly, a loose-fitting hip-length jacket, cloak or cape.
• 1749, Henry Fielding, , , Google BooksMolly, therefore, having dressed herself out in this sack, with a new laced cap, and some other ornaments which Tom had given her, repairs to church with her fan in her hand the very next Sunday.
10. (dated) A sack coat; a kind of coat worn by men, and extending from top to bottom without a cross seam.
11. (vulgar, slang) The scrotum.He got passed the ball, but it hit him in the sack.

Synonyms

• (bag) bag, tote, poke obsolete
• (informal: dismissal from employment) the axe, pink slip, the boot, the chop, the elbow, one's cards, the old heave-ho
• (colloquial: bed) hay, rack
• (vulgar slang: scrotum) ballsack, ball sack, nutsack

Hyponyms

• (bag) bindle

Derived terms

Related terms

Verb

1. To put in a sack or sacks.Help me sack the groceries.
• 1903, Jack London, , ,The gold was sacked in moose-hide bags, fifty pounds to the bag ...
2. To bear or carry in a sack upon the back or the shoulders.
3. To plunder or pillage, especially after capture; to obtain spoils of war from.The barbarians sacked Rome.
• 1898, Homer, translated by , , ,It lyre was part of the spoils which he had taken when he sacked the city of Eetion ...
4. (American football) To tackle, usually to tackle the offensive quarterback behind the line of scrimmage before he is able to throw a pass.
• 1995, John Crumpacker and Gwen Knapp, "Sack-happy defensive line stuns Dolphins", SFGate.com, November 21,On third down, the rejuvenated Rickey Jackson stormed in over All-Pro left tackle Richmond Webb to sack Marino yet again for a 2-yard loss.
5. (informal) To discharge from a job or position; to fire.He was sacked last September.
• 1999, "Russian media mogul dismisses Yeltsin's bid to sack him", CNN.com, March 5,... Boris Berezovsky on Friday dismissed President Boris Yeltsin's move to sack him from his post as executive secretary of the Commonwealth of Independent States, ...
6. (colloquial) In the phrase sack out, to fall asleep. See also hit the sack.The kids all sacked out before 9:00 on New Year’s Eve.

Synonyms

• (plunder, pillage) loot, ransack
• (to remove someone from a job) can, dismiss, fire, lay off, let go, terminate, make redundant, give the axe, give the boot, give (someone) their cards, give the chop, give the elbow, give the old heave-ho, See also:
• (slang: to hit in the groin) rack

Derived terms

• sackable
• sacker
• sack out

From earlier (wyne) seck, from Middle French (vin) sec ("dry (wine)"), from Latin siccus ("dry")

Noun

1. (dated) A variety of light-colored dry wine from Spain or the Canary Islands; also, any strong white wine from southern Europe; sherry.
• Shakespeare ShrewWill't please your lordship drink a cup of sack? ...I ne'er drank sack in my life...
• Shakespeare Henry 4-1Thou art so fat-witted, with drinking of old sack...let a cup of sack be my poison...Wherein is he good, but to taste sack and drink it?
• 1610, , by William Shakespeare, act 2 scene 2How didst thou 'scape? How cam'st thou hither? swear
  by this bottle how thou cam'st hither—I escaped upon
  a butt of sack, which the sailors heaved overboard, by
  this bottle! ...

Derived terms

• sack-whey

Verb

1. Alternative spelling of

Noun

1. Alternative spelling of

Anagrams

• acks
• cask