fence
[ fens ]
/ fɛns /
noun
verb (used with object), fenced, fenc·ing.
verb (used without object), fenced, fenc·ing.
Words nearby fence
femtometer, femur, fen, fen-phen, fenagle, fence, fence in, fence lizard, fence with, fence-mending, fence-off
Idioms for fence
mend one's fences, to strengthen or reestablish one's position by conciliation or negotiation: One could tell by his superficially deferential manner that he was trying to mend his fences.
on the fence, uncommitted; neutral; undecided: The party leaders are still on the fence.
Origin of fence
OTHER WORDS FROM fence
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for mend one's fences
fence
/ (fɛns) /
noun
verb
Derived forms of fence
fenceless, adjectivefencelike, adjectiveWord Origin for fence
C14 fens, shortened from defens defence
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Idioms and Phrases with mend one's fences (1 of 2)
mend one's fences
Improve poor relations; placate personal, political, or business contacts. For example, The senator always goes home weekends and spends time mending his fences. This metaphoric expression dates from an 1879 speech by Senator John Sherman in Mansfield, Ohio, to which he said he had returned “to look after my fences.” Although he may have meant literally to repair the fences around his farm there, media accounts of the speech took him to mean campaigning among his constituents. In succeeding decades the term was applied to nonpolitical affairs as well.
Idioms and Phrases with mend one's fences (2 of 2)
fence
In addition to the idioms beginning with fence
- fence in
- fence with
also see:
- mend one's fences
- on the fence
- straddle the fence
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.