ring fencen.
/ˈrɪŋfɛns/, /ˌrɪŋˈfɛns/, U.S. /ˈrɪŋˌfɛns/ 1. A fence completely enclosing an estate, farm, or piece of ground.Not now commonly used to refer to properties in the United Kingdom.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > enclosing or enclosure > [noun] > that which encloses > an enclosing barrier > enclosing fence or paling
hurdisa1352
gratea1400
palis?a1400
palisade1588
palisado1589
ring hedge1607
impalement1611
ring fence1614
palisadoing1661
the world > space > relative position > closed or shut condition > that which or one who closes or shuts > a barrier > [noun] > hedge or fence > a fence > surrounding
ring hedge1607
impalement1611
ring fence1614
1614 G. Markham 2nd Bk. Eng. Husbandman ii. v. 73 For the generall good both of your selfe & your neighbours, looke that you replenish all your ditches & ring fences.
1769 Bp. Wilton Inclosure Act 15 The out-fence or ring~fence.
1775 W. Marshall Minutes Agric. 21 Dec. (1778) The advantages of a compact, ring-fence Farm.
1776 W. Marshall Minutes Agric. 8 Jan. (1778) A thousand acres..lying on a level, within a ring-fence.
1823 W. Scott Peveril I. x. 271 I may indeed have said your estates were born to be united; and to be sure it is natural to me..to wish that it was all within the ring fence again.
1844 H. Stephens Bk. of Farm II. xxxii. 54 The arable land should have a ring-fence of thorn, if the situation will admit of growth or of stone.
1891 A. Tramp Casual Ramblings up & down N.Z. 54 A ring fence had been placed round the property at the snow-line.
1921 B. Williams Cecil Rhodes iii. 17 All these farms could have been contained within a ring fence of fifteen miles.
1962 R. A. Evans Waikaka Saga 283 When he got his first sheep the only fences were known as ‘ring’ fences. There was one ring fence round the whole farm.
1996 Independent 29 Mar. 20/5 Each park helped by such a scheme would require a ring fence as well as adequate patrols.
2. figurative. An effective or comprehensive barrier or means of separation or protection; a method of reserving something for a particular purpose. Also attributive.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being external > enclosing or enclosure > [noun] > that which encloses > an enclosing barrier
pale1552
wall1594
impalement1598
palisade1601
palisado1619
ring fence1795
1795 Life John Metcalf 79 ‘My lads,’ said he, ‘you are going to form a part of a ring-fence to the finest estate in the world!’
1819 ‘R. Rabelais’ Abeillard & Heloisa 333 Three thousand pupils made ring-fence.
1846 A. Smith Christopher Tadpole (1848) ii. 27 The contracted existence in a country town..is a sad padlock on the mind, keeping it in a terrible ring-fence.
1891 Pall Mall Gaz. 23 June 2/2 Extending the ‘ring-fence’ policy of commercial relations.
1950 Times 8 Feb. 6/3 The decline is understood to be due mostly to the removal of the ‘ring-fence’ round the industry, that is, the provision of the Control of Engagement Order requiring miners to stay in coal-mining employment.
1965 Economist 6 Nov. 623/2 Imports into ECSC have not been held out by the tariff ‘ring fence’ erected after the last recession.
1993 R. Barry Managem. Internat. Oil Operations xv. 337 The extent to which tax should impact on budget decisions is likely to depend on the ring fence rules of the country in which you operate.
2007 M. Lyons Lyons Inq. into Local Govt iii. §8.52 One approach would be to establish a set of national rules and ring-fences, requiring the resources only to be spent in certain ways or on certain kinds of project.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1614