fence
(fens )
Word forms: fences , fencing , fenced
1. countable noun B2
A fence is a barrier between two areas of land, made of wood or wire supported by posts.
Villagers say the fence would restrict public access to the hills.
2. verb
If you fence an area of land, you surround it with a fence.
The first task was to fence the wood to exclude sheep. [VERB noun]
Thomas was playing in a little fenced area full of sand. [VERB-ed]
3. countable noun
A fence in show jumping or horse racing is an obstacle or barrier that horses have to jump over.
4. countable noun
A fence is a person who receives stolen property and then sells it. [informal]
He originally acted as a fence for another gang before turning to burglary himself.
Synonyms: receiver, dealer, buyer, trader
5. to mend fences phrase
If one country tries to mend fences with another, it tries to end a disagreement or quarrel with the other country. You can also say that two countries mend fences.
Washington was last night doing its best to mend fences with the Europeans, saying it understood their concerns. [+ with]
The two countries fought a border war a decade ago, but now they are mending fences.
6. to sit on the fence phrase
If you sit on the fence, you avoid supporting a particular side in a discussion or argument.
They are sitting on the fence and refusing to commit themselves.
He's not afraid of making decisions and is a man who never sits on the fence.
Synonyms: be uncommitted, be uncertain, be undecided, vacillate
Phrasal verbs:
fence in
1. phrasal verb
If you fence something in, you surround it completely with a fence.
He plans to fence in about 100 acres of his ranch five miles north of town. [VERB PARTICLE noun]
2. phrasal verb [usually passive]
If you are fenced in by someone or something, they are so close to you that you are unable to move or leave.
She was basically fenced in by what the military wanted to do. [be VERB-ed PARTICLE]
He put his hand on the post behind her so that he had her fenced in and could look down on her. [VERB-ed PARTICLE]
fence off
phrasal verb
If you fence off an area of land, you build a fence round it.
Cover or fence off garden ponds when young children are around. [VERB PARTICLE noun]
Vocabulary Builder
GARDEN lawn trellis shrub gate fence birdhouse garden furniture path flowers patio flowerpot Idioms:
the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence
said to mean that other people may appear to be in a better or more attractive situation than you, but in reality their situation may not be as good as it seems
The old saying goes that, to many people, the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, and the majority of Britain's young people are no exception.
Easy Learning Idioms Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
sit on the fence
to refuse to state a definite opinion about something or to say who you support in a conflict
The commission has chosen, extraordinarily, to sit on the fence, murmuring that schools must decide for themselves.
Easy Learning Idioms Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Collocations:
chainlink fence fence separates fence surrounds fence topped with garden fence hop a fence invisible fence iron fence jump a fence mesh fence metal fence paint a fence razor-wire fence scale a fence security fence steel fence tall fence wooden fence wrought-iron fence
At the southern end of the world's longest pleasure beach stands a chainlink fence topped with a few strands of barbed wire.
Times, Sunday Times
The robots roll the crates up to the chainlink fence.
Times, Sunday Times
It's the very best thing to cover up a chainlink fence.
Globe and Mail
Afterwards, the lands were covered in landfill and secured behind a chainlink fence to ensure the long-term prevention of contact between the affected ground and human beings.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
An original wrought-iron fence separates the frontage from the high street.
Times, Sunday Times
A perimeter fence separates spectators from the pitch.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
Only a fence separates the park's animals from the city.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
An iron fence separates its grounds from the green.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
An iron fence separates the property from the sidewalk.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
For this reason a low green wire fence surrounds the clump.
Times, Sunday Times
A predator-proof fence surrounds 250 hectares of young forest, protecting flightless birds such as the kiwi, weka and kaka.
Times, Sunday Times
A fence surrounds the house and three stables to keep out wolves.
Times, Sunday Times
A rabbit- and kangaroo-proof fence surrounds the gardens.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
Barbed wire fence surrounds the runway, and may be a hazard to some aircraft.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
It was surrounded by a high chain-link fence topped with barbed wire.
FLOATING CITY (2002)
A guard escorted the prisoner from behind a fence topped with razor wire.
Christianity Today (2000)
The purpose-built beach-volleyball stadium is abandoned behind a chain-link fence topped with barbed wire.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
He half expected a triffid-style invasion over the garden fence.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Or she would throw bricks at the garden fence.
The Sun (2016)
The house needs a lot of work including the garden fencing.
The Sun (2011)
He was very helpful, doing the turfed grass in my garden for me, and we used to chat and share cups of tea over the garden fence.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
I'm not about to hop the fence to investigate.
Christianity Today
Somehow, his story hopped the fence into mine like a bold rooster, despite differences of time and place, despite difference of struggle.
Christianity Today
Jake hops a fence to retrieve his motorcycle.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
The group reaches the front gates of the amusement park and hops the fence.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
He hops a fence and, using his photography equipment, scopes out the estate.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
These invisible fence collars should not be banned.
Times, Sunday Times
The pet soon learns to avoid the invisible fence location, making it an effective virtual barrier.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
These invisible fences are life-savers, particularly on rural properties.
Times, Sunday Times
Other invisible fences are wireless.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
He was arrested after being unable to scale an iron fence.
Houston Chronicle
Instead, our back windows looked out onto a meadow that measured about 500ft long and 100ft wide, surrounded by a 6ft iron fence with one gate, which was always locked.
Times, Sunday Times
There was an iron fence that had a gap underneath, so we would distract the steward, slide underneath and sit anywhere we could.
Times, Sunday Times
We drive by a circular plaza surrounded by an iron fence.
The Sun
I have watched them pulling webs from an iron fence and carrying them off in their tiny beaks.
Times, Sunday Times
Because if a horse doesn't want to jump a fence, it won't.
Times, Sunday Times
You could still jump the fence in those days.
The Sun
He tries to jump a fence but falls to the ground.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
He had jumped a fence to get into the tunnel and held on to the wall as trains zipped past.
The Sun
I ran across the car park and jumped a fence.
The Sun
It will even take on a barrier of metal mesh fence or corrugated iron and turn it into an evergreen hedge.
Times,Sunday Times
He drove through a mesh fence and on to a runway, forcing a passenger aircraft to circle as its fuel ran low.
Times, Sunday Times
It had been backed up against the mesh fence, its rear door facing directly onto a runway.
Globe and Mail
Shreds of torn plastic snagged in barbed wire that ran across the top of the mesh fence surrounding them rustled in the desert wind.
Times, Sunday Times
A casual look through the mesh fence gives you a moment of peace, a feeling that, even in a human-made environment, humans are not the only priority.
Times, Sunday Times
His relatives were buried in a modest plot, surrounded by maize fields, and a rusting metal fence.
Times, Sunday Times
A member of the entry team begins to break through the metal fence with a saw.
Times, Sunday Times
The only way we could get in was under the metal fence.
The Sun
A 16ft-high metal fence encircles the property.
Times, Sunday Times
I have watched a pair on the rails of a metal fence, slowly collecting bits of a web in their beaks and carrying it off.
Times, Sunday Times
He did, then offered to return the next day to help me paint the fence.
The Sun
Paint a fence, plant a shrub, bake a cake, make chocolates.
The Sun
I'd be painting the shed, splash the fence, and have to paint the fence.
Globe and Mail
In which our heroes paint the fence and sand the floor.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
The things that will do you good - moderate exercise, a little socialising, some gentle housework, a small project like painting a fence or digging a potato patch - mostly seem repugnant.
Times, Sunday Times
The men, aged between 18 and 30, spread blankets over the razor-wire fence surrounding the prison to climb to freedom and scattered on foot.
Times, Sunday Times
Container terminals are heavily guarded and surrounded by razor-wire fences.
ST
This has slowed dramatically since the introduction of razor-wire fences and tough assessments.
Times, Sunday Times
Then out into a garishly floodlit yard, past uniformed guards, through three gates in towering, razor-wire fences, and under the barred windows of a forbidding wing of cells.
Times, Sunday Times
Shortly afterwards, the gates were locked and security features such as razor-wire fences and video cameras were installed.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
When they tried to scale the fence in front, police attempted to throw them back in.
The Sun
The pair were caught trying to scale a fence.
The Sun
Over a garage, drop down to a lawn, scale a fence into the adjacent plot, sprint past the kitchen window, up the drive, vault the front gate and away!
Times, Sunday Times
In 2013, a security review was launched after an intruder scaled a fence and got into the palace.
The Sun
A friend had scaled a fence to get to the bins and was cautioned by the police.
The Sun
From there they climb security fencing to get inside the terminal.
The Sun (2015)
It will be surrounded by more than eight miles of security fencing.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The caves are a popular meeting place for local youngsters, despite warning signs and a security fence intended to keep out visitors.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
In the build-up, the two boxers were separated by a steel fence and flanked by security guards.
The Sun
The property had been surrounded by a specially built 9ft-high steel fence with concrete bollards.
The Sun
A steel fence was put in place to keep the two boxers separated during the announcement.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
This station has full windscreens except at the south end of the northbound platform, which has a waist-high steel fence instead.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
A single staircase from each platform go up to a raised crossover split in two by a steel fence.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
It's next to a main road, but there's a tall fence and trees between, so you feel like you're in a secluded spot.
The Sun
He then put up a tall fence in the back garden.
The Sun
She said work would begin on a tall fence tomorrow.
Chicago Sun-Times
In these new facilities, no stands were put behind the goals, with a tall fence used in its place.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
Both versions of the tall fence had the effect of keeping the neighbors in the adjacent row houses from watching the games for free.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
A lean-to mudroom dominated the space, and the yard consisted of concrete and turfgrass bordered by chain-link and wooden fencing.
Globe and Mail (2003)
Rubbish bins are hidden behind wooden fencing and a row of neatly planted bamboo adds a stylish splash of green.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Marta could see the wooden fence that had caught her coat last night.
ROUGH JUSTICE (2002)
A piece of ground the size of a double bed protected by a carved wooden fence.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
It involves wearing wooden fencing.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
An original wrought-iron fence separates the frontage from the high street.
Times, Sunday Times
The forecourt was separated from the city by a wrought-iron fence with two octagonal guard houses.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
It consists of a small park on a trapezium-shaped site, surrounded by a wrought-iron fence of inventive design.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
The bankers erected a wrought-iron fence around the parcel to keep vandals out while park improvements were being implemented.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
The building was set back from the street by a courtyard, protected by a wrought-iron fence with a gate.
Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0
Translations:
Chinese: 栅栏, 圈起
Japanese: 柵, 囲いをする
- mission control
- mission fails
- mission goal
- mission objective
- mission scientist
- mission statement
- mission succeeds
- missis
- missis
- missive
- miss out
- misspell
- misspell a word
- misspelling
- misspend
- Miss Right
- misstate
- misstatement
- misstep
- miss the boat
- miss the camaraderie
- miss the excitement
- miss the fairway
- miss training
- missus