Barrier reef

Barrier reef
Barrier Bar"ri*er, n. [OE. barrere, barere, F. barri[`e]re, fr. barre bar. See {Bar}, n.] 1. (Fort.) A carpentry obstruction, stockade, or other obstacle made in a passage in order to stop an enemy. [1913 Webster]

2. A fortress or fortified town, on the frontier of a country, commanding an avenue of approach. [1913 Webster]

3. pl. A fence or railing to mark the limits of a place, or to keep back a crowd. [1913 Webster]

No sooner were the barriers opened, than he paced into the lists. --Sir W. Scott. [1913 Webster]

4. Any obstruction; anything which hinders approach or attack. ``Constitutional barriers.'' --Hopkinson. [1913 Webster]

5. Any limit or boundary; a line of separation. [1913 Webster]

'Twixt that [instinct] and reason, what a nice barrier! --Pope. [1913 Webster]

{Barrier gate}, a heavy gate to close the opening through a barrier.

{Barrier reef}, a form of coral reef which runs in the general direction of the shore, and incloses a lagoon channel more or less extensive.

{To fight at barriers}, to fight with a barrier between, as a martial exercise. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] ||


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Barrier reef — can refer to: *a coral reef, *the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, *the Belize Barrier Reef, *the New Caledonia Barrier Reef, * Barrier Reef (TV) , an Australian television series …   Wikipedia

  • barrier reef — n. a long coral reef that is parallel to the shoreline, separated from the shore by a deep, wide lagoon: see GREAT BARRIER REEF …   English World dictionary

  • Barrier Reef (TV) — Barrier Reef was a 1970s Australian television programme.It was a fictional series about a group of marine biologists on board a ship carrying out research around the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.It was shown later on British… …   Wikipedia

  • barrier reef — ► NOUN ▪ a coral reef close to the shore but separated from it by a channel of deep water …   English terms dictionary

  • barrier reef — n a line of ↑coral (=pink stone like substance) separated from the shore by water …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • barrier reef — noun a long coral reef near and parallel to the shore • Hypernyms: ↑coral reef * * * noun, pl ⋯ reefs [count] : a long coral reef that is near a shore * * * ˌbarrier ˈreef [barrier reef] noun a line of rock and ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • barrier reef — a reef of coral running roughly parallel to the shore and separated from it by a wide, deep lagoon. [1795 1805] * * * ▪ geology       a coral reef (q.v.) roughly parallel to a shore and separated from it by a lagoon or other body of water. A… …   Universalium

  • Barrier Reef — /bæriə ˈrif/ (say bareeuh reef) noun → Great Barrier Reef …  

  • Barrier Reef. — See Great Barrier Reef. * * * …   Universalium

  • Barrier Reef — Sp Barjèrinis rifas Ap Barrier Reef L Hondūro įl., Belizas …   Pasaulio vietovardžiai. Internetinė duomenų bazė

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”