Meaning & use
hunk
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Meanings
nouncountable
A large, thick piece cut or broken off something, often food.
Grammar: Usually followed by of: a hunk of bread.
Patterns
- a hunk of something
He tore a hunk of bread from the loaf.
She cut a hunk of cheese for each sandwich.
A hunk of ice slid off the roof.
nouncountableinformal
A strong, good-looking man.
Grammar: Informal and often playful: a movie hunk.
The poster showed a famous hunk in a leather jacket.
Her friends teased her about the hunk next door.
He played the romantic hunk in three films.
nouncountableinformal
A considerable share or portion of something, such as time or money.
Grammar: Usually followed by of: a hunk of the budget.
Patterns
- a hunk of something
Rent takes a hunk of my paycheck every month.
The project ate up a big hunk of her year.
Word forms
| plural | hunks |
|---|
Common combinations
- a hunk of bread
- He chewed on a hunk of bread as he walked.
- a hunk of cheese
- They shared a hunk of cheese on the trail.
- a hunk of rock
- A hunk of rock rolled onto the path.
- a hunk of meat
- The cook carved a hunk of meat.
- a movie hunk
- The magazine named him the year's top movie hunk.
Synonyms and how they differ
- chunk
- Chunk is almost the same for pieces, but hunk usually sounds slightly bigger or rougher.
- slab
- A slab is flat and thick, while a hunk can be any lumpy shape.
- lump
- Lump suggests a small, shapeless mass, whereas hunk implies something large enough to be held.
- heartthrob
- A heartthrob is a man admired by many fans, while hunk focuses on his muscular looks.
Word family
Commonly confused: hunk or hulk?
hunk vs hulk
A hulk is a big, clumsy person or an old ship, while a hunk is a piece of something or a good-looking man.
Practice
She broke off a ___ of bread and dipped it in the soup.
Choose one answer.
A hunk of bread is a thick piece. Hulk, hint and hump are real words but do not form this common phrase.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hunk”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.