hunk

Hunk is a versatile English term with several meanings. In informal speech, it most often refers to a physically attractive, well-built man, typically described as a 'hunk' or 'beefcake.' The usage is colloquial and often affectionate or flirtatious, and the term may also appear in longer phrases such as 'absolute hunk' or 'muscle-bound hunk.' The sense derives from the general metaphor of a solid, chunky piece or lump of material being applied to a person with a muscular, sturdy appearance, dating from mid-20th century American English.

In computing, a hunk is a contiguous block of data in a patch or diff file. When comparing two versions of a text file, changes are grouped into hunks, each representing a consecutive set of lines that have been added, removed, or modified. Patch utilities apply these hunks against the original file to produce the updated version. A hunk is usually described in a header that shows the range of lines affected in the original and new files, followed by the lines themselves prefixed with +, -, or a space to indicate added, removed, or context lines. In version control workflows, hunks are the unit of change transmitted when patches are created or applied, and tools may allow matching or fuzzing of hunks to accommodate offset differences.

Other uses are rare or context-dependent; the primary senses are the slang for a good-looking person and the technical term in patching. The meaning is usually inferred from context, and the two domains are not related etymologically.