picket fence

noun

1. a fence consisting of pickets or pales nailed to horizontal stringers between upright posts.

picket fence

noun

1. a fence consisting of pickets supported at close regular intervals by being driven into the ground, by interlacing with strong wire, or by nailing to horizontal timbers fixed to posts in the ground

Word History and Origins

Origin of picket fence¹

An Americanism dating back to 1790–1800

Example Sentences

‘Gen Z would rather invest in index funds and travel the world than tie themselves to a 30-year mortgage and a picket fence.’

Read more on MarketWatch

A picket fence is trim, as are the schoolhouse’s large windows.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Hanging from picket fences that separate lawns, Stars and Stripes mingled with flags for the pro-police campaign Blue Lives Matter.

Read more on BBC

A Thomas Kinkade painting of 1950s-era white picket fence suburbia straight out of “Leave It to Beaver,” with the caption “Protect the Homeland.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

But this, for the most part, is South Korea’s middle-class dream of home ownership — its version of a house with the white picket fence.

Read more on Los Angeles Times