Etymologically
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fence

Etymology and origin of the English word fence

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Clipping
First attested
before 1338
Ultimate origin
Latin (defendo)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /fɛns/[1]

Etymology

It is Middle English fens, a shortened form of defens (see defence),[2][3][4][5] from Latin dēfendere (“to ward off”).[5] The same shortening gave fend and fender.[3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The action of defending: before 1338, in Mannyng's Chronicle, in Barnhart;[2] about 1330 in the OED, the early 14th century in Etymonline.[6][3]

Semantic evolution

An enclosure or barrier, that which serves as a defence, is first recorded in the Paston Letters (1461).[2][3] Swordsmanship, the art of fencing, is from 1533,[6] and the verb, to fight with swords, is first found in Shakespeare's Merry Wives of Windsor (1598).[2] The verb, to surround with a fence, is from 1435.[2] A receiver of stolen goods is thieves' slang from about 1700, from the idea of dealing under cover of secrecy, and the verb in that sense from the 1610s.[3][4] On the fence, undecided, is from 1828.[3]

Timeline

  • before 1338 – defence.[2]
  • 1435 – to enclose with a fence.[2]
  • 1461 – a barrier, enclosure.[2]
  • 1533 – swordsmanship.[6]
  • c. 1700 – a receiver of stolen goods.[3]
  • 1828 – on the fence.[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A barrier of posts, rails or wire enclosing an area of land.
  2. A barrier for horses to jump in a race.
  3. (slang) A dealer in stolen goods.

Verb

  1. To surround or close off with a fence.
  2. To fight with swords as a sport.
  3. To be evasive in answering questions.
  4. (slang) To deal in stolen goods.

Word family

  • fencer
  • fenceless
  • fencelessness
  • fencelike
  • fence-mending
  • fencerow
  • fence-sitter
  • fence-sitting
  • defence
  • fend
  • fender
  • fencing
  • offence

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
Cite this entry

“Fence.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/fence. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·