Emily Dickinson Lexicon

TRUSS, n. [Fr. trousse; Dan. trosse, a cord or rope; Sw. tross; W. trwsa, a truss, a packet. See Trowsers.]

1. In a general sense, a bundle; as, a truss of hay or straw. A truss of hay in England is half a hundred. A truss of straw is of different weights in different places.
2. In surgery, a bandage or apparatus used in cases of hernia, to keep up the reduced parts and hinder further protrusion, made for other purposes. Cyc.
3. Among botanists, a truss or bunch is a tuft of flowers formed at the top of the main stalk or stem of certain plants. Cyc.
4. In navigation, a machine to pull a lower yard close to its mast and retain it firmly in that position. Cyc.
5. [See Trous.]