Etymology
Origin of barbed
Explanation
Something that's barbed is sharp or spiky. Barbed wire has very sharp points at intervals along its length, to keep animals or people in (or out of) a yard. Roses are famous for their sweet blossoms and barbed stems. A fish hook is also barbed, with a sharp spike on its end. You can use barbed figuratively, to describe cruel or biting words: "Her barbed comment made it clear how angry she was after the practical joke he'd played on her." The root of barbed is the Old French word for "beard," or "something beardlike," barbe, from the Latin barba, also "beard."
Vocabulary lists containing barbed
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
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Seedfolks
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This Week in Words: October 22 - 27, 2017
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A collection of small, wall-mounted sculptures, he combined fragments of found and recycled steel and welded them into forms of chains, sharp tools, barbed wire and other metal objects.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026
In Jhapa, soldiers with armoured trucks manned barbed wire barricades around the counting centre.
From Barron's • Mar. 7, 2026
Screwworms pose a serious threat to farm animals, especially those with common injuries from barbed wire, birthing, or procedures such as dehorning.
From Science Daily • Dec. 17, 2025
The Wall Street Journal has no way of verifying the stories of foreign fighters held here behind layers of barbed wire and high walls.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 11, 2025
I circle around to the place where the barbed wire is loose, only it isn’t loose anymore.
From "The Light in Hidden Places" by Sharon Cameron
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
