barrier

[bar-ee-er]

noun

1. anything built or serving to bar passage, as a railing, fence, or the like.

   People may pass through the barrier only when their train is announced.

   Synonyms: impediment, hindrance, obstruction, wall, palisade

2. any natural bar or obstacle.

   a mountain barrier.

   Synonyms: impediment, hindrance, obstruction

3. anything that restrains or obstructs progress, access, etc..

   a trade barrier.

   Synonyms: impediment, hindrance, obstruction

4. a limit or boundary of any kind.

   the barriers of caste.

5. Physical Geography.,  an Antarctic ice shelf or ice front.

6. barrier beach.

7. History/Historical.,  barriers, the palisade or railing surrounding the ground where tourneys and jousts were carried on.

8. Archaic.,  a fortress or stockade.

barrier

/ ˈbærɪə /

noun

1. anything serving to obstruct passage or to maintain separation, such as a fence or gate

2. anything that prevents or obstructs passage, access, or progress

   a barrier of distrust

3. anything that separates or hinders union

   a language barrier

4. 1. an exposed offshore sand bar separated from the shore by a lagoon

   2. ( as modifier )

      a barrier beach

5. (sometimes capital) that part of the Antarctic icecap extending over the sea

Word History and Origins

Origin of barrier¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Middle French barriere ( barre bar ¹ + -iere, from Latin -āria -ary ); replacing Middle English barrere, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin barrera

Word History and Origins

Origin of barrier¹

C14: from Old French barriere , from barre _bar ¹

Synonym Study

See bar ¹.

Example Sentences

What makes these allegations particularly concerning is that, if accurate, they’d amount to an established firm erecting barriers to entry to a smaller competitor—classic anticompetitive behavior.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

As a pair of academics wrote recently in MIT Sloan Management Review, “The barrier to full automation isn’t raw capability—it’s a stack of human, legal and cultural constraints.”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Christianity crosses every kind of barrier: political, religious, ethnic, economic, geographic.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Officials added feedback highlighted the lack of inhalation spaces as "the main barrier to using the service".

Read more on BBC

“We cannot afford to create barriers that limit entry and growth in this essential profession and any policy changes must prioritize expanding access and enabling professional nurses to practice with knowledge and compassion,” Zhan said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• barricade 
• blockade 
• boundary 
• fence 
• hurdle 
• impediment 
• limit 
• obstacle 
• railing 
• roadblock 
• wall