concertina wire

[kon-ser-tee-nuh wahy^uhr]

noun

1. wire with razor-sharp edges or projections, placed in coils as a barrier along the tops of fences or walls, as at a prison, or on the ground to impede advancing enemy troops.

Word History and Origins

Origin of concertina wire¹

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

The concertina wire used to barricade the road has been moved to one side and local people and flocks of sheep can be seen making their way down.

From BBC

If you drive far enough down Pinehill, the trees that flank both sides of the road eventually give way to a clearing, two parking lots, a heap of concertina wire, and two small signs: one for the LaSalle ICE Processing Center, aside the logo of the Department of Homeland Security, and one for Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center, beneath the logo of GEO Group, the private prison operator that runs the facility.

From Slate

The U.S. military has added layers of concertina wire to six miles of the border fence near San Ysidro.

From Los Angeles Times

Meanwhile, the Border Patrol, with the assistance of 750 U.S. military troops, has reinforced six miles of the border wall with concertina wire.

From Los Angeles Times

A gate in the barrier opened and Border Patrol, Marines and Army officials showed reporters how both fences were now sheathed in concertina wire.

From Los Angeles Times