• 12 parts
  • Checked September 2026

Parts of a Dump Truck

A dump truck with its body down, then with the body raised and the tailgate open.

Parts of a Dump Truck

Name Date

Tap any part to read, rename or leave it out

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
More options

Write the name of each numbered part.Answer key

  1. Cab
  2. Cab protector (cab shield)
  3. Dump body
  4. Tailgate
  5. Frame
  6. Mud flaps
  7. Hoist
  8. Rear hinge
  9. Upper hinge pin
  10. Tailgate latch
  11. Hydraulic pump
  12. Oil reservoir

Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry. Licence: own work.

Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a part is answered.

Next step Next: the parts of a cement truck

All 12 parts on the diagram

Show the list

The truck 6

  1. Cab Where the driver sits. The controls for the body are inside it.
  2. Cab protector (cab shield) A plate on the front of the dump body, over the cab.
  3. Dump body The open box that carries the load. Also called the bed.
  4. Tailgate The gate at the back of the body. It swings on its top hinges.
  5. Frame The rails of the truck chassis. The dump body is mounted on them.
  6. Mud flaps Flexible sheets that hang behind the tires.

Raising the body 6

  1. Hoist Lifts and lowers the dump body with hydraulic cylinders.
  2. Rear hinge Joins the back of the body to the frame. The body tips on it.
  3. Upper hinge pin The pin at each top corner that the tailgate hangs from.
  4. Tailgate latch Holds the bottom of the tailgate shut. It is released to dump.
  5. Hydraulic pump Driven from the engine through the power takeoff. It pressurizes the oil.
  6. Oil reservoir The storage tank for the hydraulic oil.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30 and kept only where two independent sources use it. (1) Wikipedia, text only: Dump truck, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dump_truck ; M939 series 5-ton 6x6 truck (a dump body with cab protector; cab shield); Studebaker US6 (dump body cab shield); Mudflap. (2) US Army operator's manuals for trucks that include a dump truck, one source: TM 9-2320-272-10, https://www.liberatedmanuals.com/TM-9-2320-272-10.pdf ; TM 9-2320-260-10; TM 5-3805-254-10. (3) A dump body maker's operator manual, used for names only: https://web.archive.org/web/20131019223535/http://www.galiongodwin.com/docs/DumpTruckOperatorManual.pdf . Rear hinge rests on Wikipedia and the maker; mud flaps on the Army manual and Wikipedia; upper hinge pin, tailgate latch, hydraulic pump and oil reservoir on the Army manual and the maker; every other name on all three. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; no maker's truck, nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

The parts of a dump truck in two drawings. The first shows the truck loaded, with the body down. The second shows what raises the body and lets the load out.

Read the full guide

The body down

The dump body is the open box that carries the load. It rests on the frame behind the cab, and the cab protector reaches forward from it over the cab. The tailgate closes the back. Mud flaps hang behind the tires.

The body raised

The hoist pushes the front of the body up, and the body tips on the rear hinge. The hydraulic pump takes oil from the oil reservoir and sends it to the hoist. With the tailgate latch released, the tailgate hangs from its upper hinge pins and the load slides out under it.

  • The cab protector is also called the cab shield. The quiz takes either name.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a dump truck called?

The cab, the frame and the dump body, the open box that carries the load. The hoist raises the body, which tips on the rear hinge, and the tailgate at the back swings open to let the load out.

What is the back of a dump truck called?

The dump body. It is also called the bed or the dump box. The gate that closes its rear end is the tailgate.

What lifts the bed of a dump truck?

The hoist: one or more hydraulic cylinders under the body. A hydraulic pump, driven from the engine through the power takeoff, sends oil from the reservoir to the cylinders.

What is the part over the cab of a dump truck called?

The cab protector, or cab shield. It is a plate fixed to the front of the dump body that reaches forward over the roof of the cab.

More quizzes

Show 7 more

Browse Science Quizzes