fence
Definitions
A barrier of wood, wire, or metal that encloses or divides an area of land.
围栏，栅栏，篱笆
(informal) A person who buys and sells stolen goods.
（非正式）销赃者
To surround or separate with a fence.
用围栏围住，圈起
To fight with a sword as a sport; to avoid giving a direct answer.
击剑；（回答时）回避，闪烁其词
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedfence is defence with its front clipped off — it once simply meant 'defense.' From there it split two ways: the thing that defends a property became the barrier we call a fence; and the art of sword-defense became the verb to fence (and the sport fencing). Both halves of the root survive in one word: the wall that keeps blows out, and the blade that trades them.
Root fens still carries 8 more wordsWhy It Means This
Why does one word mean both a garden barrier and a sword sport? Both are clippings of 'defence.' A fence defends your land; fencing defends your body with a blade. The idiom 'sit on the fence' uses the literal barrier — you perch on the dividing line, refusing to come down on either side.
Common Collocations
- 1.build a fence建围栏
- 2.fence off用栏围起
- 3.barbed-wire fence带刺铁丝网
- 4.sit on the fence保持中立/骑墙观望
- 5.garden fence花园围栏
Example Sentences
- 1.
They built a wooden fence around the garden.
- 2.
The farmer fenced off the field to keep the sheep in.
- 3.
She learned to fence when she was at university.
- 4.
The politician fenced with reporters, refusing to give a straight answer.
- 5.
He was arrested for acting as a fence for stolen jewelry.