fence
Americannoun
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fences
plural
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a barrier enclosing or bordering a field, yard, etc., usually made of vertical posts connected with horizontal sections of sturdy material or materials, as wood, metal, vinyl, or wire, used to prevent entrance, to confine, or to mark a boundary.
Our garden fence is not high enough to keep the deer out.
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Informal. a person who receives and disposes of stolen goods.
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the place of business of such a person.
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the act, practice, art, or sport of fencing.
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skill in argument, repartee, etc.
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Machinery. a guard or guide, as for regulating the movements of a tool or work.
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Carpentry. a slotted guide used especially with a framing square to lay out cuts on rafters and staircase strings.
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Archaic. a means of defense; a bulwark.
verb (used with object)
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fences,
present (3rd person singular)
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fenced,
past participle, past
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fencing
present participle
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to enclose by some barrier, establishing exclusive right to possession.
to fence a farm.
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to separate by or as by a fence or fences (often followed by in, off, out, etc.).
to fence off a corner of one's yard; to fence out unwholesome influences.
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to defend; protect; guard.
The president was fenced by bodyguards wherever he went.
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to ward off; keep out.
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Informal. to sell (stolen goods) to a fence.
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Nautical. to reinforce (an opening in a sail or the like) by sewing on a grommet or other device.
verb (used without object)
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fences,
present (3rd person singular)
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fenced,
past participle, past
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fencing
present participle
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to practice the art or sport of fencing.
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to parry arguments; strive to avoid giving direct answers; hedge.
The mayor fenced when asked if he would run again.
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(of a horse) to leap over a fence.
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Obsolete. to raise a defense.
idioms
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mend one's fences, to strengthen or reestablish one's position by conciliation or negotiation.
One could tell by his superficially deferential manner that he was trying to mend his fences.
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on the fence, uncommitted; neutral; undecided.
The party leaders are still on the fence.
noun
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a structure that serves to enclose an area such as a garden or field, usually made of posts of timber, concrete, or metal connected by wire, netting, rails, or boards
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slang a dealer in stolen property
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an obstacle for a horse to jump in steeplechasing or showjumping
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machinery a guard or guide, esp in a circular saw or plane
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a projection usually fitted to the top surface of a sweptback aircraft wing to prevent movement of the airflow towards the wing tips
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to restore a position or reputation that has been damaged, esp in politics
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to re-establish friendly relations (with someone)
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unable or unwilling to commit oneself
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informal unreasonable, unfair, or unjust
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to be unable or unwilling to commit oneself
verb
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(tr) to construct a fence on or around (a piece of land, etc)
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(tr; foll by in or off) to close (in) or separate (off) with or as if with a fence
he fenced in the livestock
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(intr) to fight using swords or foils
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(intr) to evade a question or argument, esp by quibbling over minor points
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(intr) to engage in skilful or witty debate, repartee, etc
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slang (intr) to receive stolen property
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archaic (tr) to ward off or keep out
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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outfenceverb (used with object)
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refenceverb (used with object)
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unfenceverb (used with object)
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fencelessadjective
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fencelikeadjective
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well-fencedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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fencesimple
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fencessimple
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have fencedperfect
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has fencedperfect
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am fencingprogressive
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are fencingprogressive
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is fencingprogressive
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have been fencingperfect progressive
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has been fencingperfect progressive
Past
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fencedsimple
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had fencedperfect
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was fencingprogressive
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were fencingprogressive
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had been fencingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of fence
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English fens, shortening of defens “(means of) fortification, resistance, defense”; see origin at defense
Explanation
A fence is a usually wooden or metal structure that encloses a yard, pasture, or other area. Many people with back yard swimming pools put fences around them to make sure small children don't fall in. The difference between a fence and a wall is that you can almost always see through a fence, at least to some degree, while a wall is solid. You can use fence as a verb too: "I think I'll fence my yard in, because my chickens keep wandering off." If someone calls you a fence, though, they mean you're selling stolen goods, and if you fence professionally, you participate in the sword fighting sport of fencing.
Vocabulary lists containing fence
"The History Teacher" by Billy Collins
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"Saying Yes" and "A Lion Hunt"
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Unit 9
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Two pitches later, he watched another ball fly over the fence, this time off Garrett Mitchell’s bat.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Brice Turang got the barrel of his bat to an inside sinker and lifted it over the fence in left-center, into the Brewers’ bullpen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
During the meeting he questioned why the areas have a fence that is "only three foot" with no sign saying that chemicals are there, or why it was fenced off.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
The pair, aged 36 and 32 and who live in the UK, were subsequently arrested inside the perimeter a few hours after searches found a small breach of the fence at the site.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
I look over the fence to see if I can spot Ray, but no Ray and no CPU.
From "The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman" by Gennifer Choldenko
Rende's company in North Jackson, Ohio, makes and distributes aluminum building products used in fixtures like fences.
From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026
In recent years, he has relentlessly sealed his border, installing new fences, concrete walls and land mines along the DMZ.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
Clearly, the fences weren't robust enough, and that is exactly what she says we are seeing with AI guardrails right now.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
Such materials could improve protection for cultural heritage sites, cars, major structures, and even ordinary garden fences.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026
Some of the fences were missing, and the Herding Machine was broken, but the cows promised not to wander off, and they began grazing on the windblown grass.
From "The Wild Robot Escapes" by Peter Brown
On a recent Sunday, resident Filiberto Reyes thought his beloved husky had once again gotten out of the fenced front yard.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
Site owners the National Trust fenced off the stump to see if it would recover, with general manager Andrew Poad saying he is "filled with hope by the way nature is taking its course".
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
It is fenced in and gilded, with literal gold.
From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2026
On the Estonian side, antitank obstacles called dragon’s teeth are splayed along a small section of the riverbank, fenced in by barbed wire.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
I wore eyeliner most days, even when I fenced, and wasn’t interested in how anyone felt about it.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
The protest involved dozens of people walking on public footpaths and then going through a gap in the metal fencing around the site to access the private land.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
We got out at the northwestern edge of the lagoon, where there are swaths of land that have been churned up by heavy machinery, stretches of gravel, and remnants of fencing.
From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026
Homendy said she walked the path of destruction, seeing the tire marks cut through the grass outside the runway—and navigation equipment, air bags and fencing strewn over the area.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026
The initial proposal called for green wrought-iron fencing around both sides of MacArthur Park, with gates at eight existing entry and exit points.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
I started typing questions about fencing into the search bar on my computer, and one hour later realized I needed to give fencing another try.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
