Etymologically
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barrier

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 16 October 2026 at 13:23. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈbæɹi.ə/ (UK)[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English barere, barrer, borrowed from Anglo-Norman barrere, Old French barriere (“obstacle, gatekeeper”),[2][3][4] from barre (“bar”) (see bar).[2][3][5] NODE calls the French word of unknown origin.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

A palisade or stockade barring the way of an enemy: about 1325 in the OED, the early 14th century in Etymonline, about 1380 in Barnhart.[7][3][2]

Semantic evolution

The spelling with -i-, from French, was introduced in the 15th and 16th centuries.[2] A fence or railing preventing access is from 1570,[7] and a fortress commanding the entrance to a country from 1600.[7] A frontier generally is from 1709,[7] and the toll gate of a continental town from 1825.[7] Anything that prevents progress, a figurative obstacle, follows.[8][9] Barrier reef is first known from 1805.[3]

Timeline

  • c. 1325 – a palisade.[7]
  • 1570 – a railing.[7]
  • 1709 – a frontier.[7]
  • 1805 – barrier reef.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A fence or other obstacle that prevents movement or access.
  2. A circumstance or obstacle that keeps people or things apart or prevents progress: a language barrier.
  3. A limit or boundary: the sound barrier.

Word family

  • heat barrier
  • barrier reef
  • trade barrier
  • Great Barrier Reef
  • ice barrier
  • sound barrier
  • Jersey barrier
  • barrier island

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  9. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins