barrier

Origin:
1275–1325; Middle English < Middle French barriere (barre bar¹ + -iere < Latin -āria -ary); replacing Middle English barrere < Anglo-French < Medieval Latin barrera

Synonyms
1. palisade, wall. 1–3. obstruction, hindrance, impediment. See bar¹.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins

World English Dictionary

barrier (ˈbærɪə)

—n
1.	anything serving to obstruct passage or to maintain separation, such as a fence or gate
2.	anything that prevents or obstructs passage, access, or progress: a barrier of distrust
3.	anything that separates or hinders union: a language barrier
4.	a. an exposed offshore sand bar separated from the shore by a lagoon
	b. (as modifier): a barrier beach
5.	(sometimes capital) that part of the Antarctic icecap extending over the sea

[C14: from Old French barriere, from barrebar¹]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

barrier

early 14c., from O.Fr. barriere "obstacle, gatekeeper," from barre "bar" (see bar (1)). First record of barrier reef is from 1805.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

barrier bar·ri·er (bār'ē-ər)
n.

A structure, such as a fence, built to bar passage.
A boundary or limit.
An obstacle or impediment.
Something that separates or holds apart.
Something immaterial that obstructs or impedes behavior.
A physical or biological factor that limits the migration, interbreeding, or free movement of individuals or populations.

Example sentences

The boundary of the sphere, the wall of fire, is not an actual physical barrier.

Stem cells injected past this barrier can migrate to regions where they are

needed and develop into new brain cells.

But the biggest barrier to an effective financial market may be demography.

We simply wanted to lower the barrier of participation for everyone in the

newsroom.

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traverse barricade barrier island claustrum fence Great Barrier Reef

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Matching Quote

"The distinction between the two types of art is a difference of density rather than of species. In the same number of bars of Beethoven and Sousa, there is, in Beethoven, more of the essence of music, giving a thicker, more intense effect likely to alienate the unfamiliar listener by "boring" him, just as the palate accustomed to that richer food is bored by the thinness of the popular tune. The feeling that this is not the only difference is due to the fact that as an art grows more and more complex and dense, the number of relations among simple elements increases until those relations look like extraordinarily refined experiences denied to the common herd. Yet there is no real barrier to be leaped over by an effort of genius between understanding a "vulgar" dance tune and a Beethoven symphony."

-Jacques Barzun