gunny

plural gunnies

1. uncountableusuallyA coarse heavy fabric made of jute or hemp.

   Traffic is brisk, and goods consists of rice, gunny (hessian), maize and native implements.

   1946 September and October, “Notes and News: Light Railways in India”, in Railway Magazine, page 316

   1 more example

   Provisions were ferried by camel in stout sacks of gunny with blocks of ice packed round them; a herculean task.

   1974, Lawrence Durrell, Monsieur, Faber & Faber, published 1992, page 102

2. abbreviationclippingcountableusuallyClipping of gunny sack

plural gunnies

1. countableinformalA gunnery sergeant.

   “As a rule of thumb, Marine corporals, when a gunny asks a question, answer it,”

   2007, W. E. B. Griffin, The Hunters

   2 more examples

   The gunny's voice reverberated between the barracks as we marched, “Ya left right . . . left right . . . left right left. […] Then the gunny unexpectedly stopped our forward movement. “Company, halt!”

   2004, Buzz Williams, Spare parts: a marine reservist's journey from campus to combat in Vietnam

   Alongside even' officer chain of command is an enlisted one, and the company gunnery sergeant ("gunny" for short) is the enlisted counterpart […] Without a gunny, the day-to-day operations of the infantry would likely grind to a halt.

   2010, Donovan Campbell, Joker One: A Marine Platoon's Story of Courage, Leadership, and ..., page 37

comparative gunnier · superlative gunniest

1. informalResembling or characteristic of a gun.
2. informalFull of guns or gunplay.

   "Aw, ferget them two guns!" Bland surrendered. "This is sure the gunniest country I ever stopped in. Even the Janes–"

   1918, B. M. Bower, Skyrider