wall

noun

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\ ˈwȯl

Definition of wall

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : a high thick masonry structure forming a long rampart or an enclosure chiefly for defense —often used in plural

b : a masonry fence around a garden, park, or estate

c : a structure that serves to hold back pressure (as of water or sliding earth)

2 : one of the sides of a room or building connecting floor and ceiling or foundation and roof

3 : the side of a footpath next to buildings

4 : an extreme or desperate position or a state of defeat, failure, or ruin the surrounded troops had their backs against the wall

5 : a material layer enclosing space the wall of a container heart walls

6 : something resembling a wall (as in appearance, function, or effect) especially : something that acts as a barrier or defense a wall of reserve tariff wall

off the wall

slang : crazy the plan was off the wall

up the wall

slang : into a state of intense agitation, annoyance, or frustration the noise drove me up the wall

wall

verb (1)

walled; walling; walls

Definition of wall (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

1a : to provide, cover with, or surround with or as if with a wall wall in the garden

b : to separate by or as if by a wall walled off half the house

2a : immure walled the monster up within the tomb— E. A. Poe

b : to close (an opening) with or as if with a wall

wall

verb (2)

walled; walling; walls

Definition of wall (Entry 3 of 3)

intransitive verb

of the eyes : to roll in a dramatic manner

transitive verb

: to roll (one's eyes) in a dramatic manner

Other Words from wall Synonyms More Example Sentences Phrases Containing wall Learn More About wall

Examples of wall in a Sentence

Noun A stone wall marks off their property. the Great Wall of China the walls of the ancient city She hung posters on the walls of her room. This apartment building has thin walls, and you can hear everything your neighbors say. Muscles in the abdominal wall help protect organs. See More

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The ball, launched off the bat of Kevin Graham, just cleared the wall — and the reach of Bello’s glove — and deposited into Auburn’s bullpen. — Tom Green | Tgreen@al.com, al, 18 June 2022 According to courtroom testimony, after the shooting, investigators found what prosecutors described as troubling evidence in the teen's bedroom: a shooting target on his bedroom wall, an empty bottle of booze and a Nazi coin. — Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press, 17 June 2022 Participants learn about the art of Luiseño basket weaving and will create a Cherokee single-wall twine traditional basket to take home. — Linda Mcintosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 June 2022 The run-through-a-wall adrenaline starts coursing through the veins with each step through campus. — Freep.com, 10 June 2022 So, like any other Pacific Point Realty project, the 15-townhome development in Atlanta’s Poncey-Highland neighborhood requires truckloads of lumber, dry wall, doors, flooring and plumbing fixtures — as well as a lot of planning. — Michael E. Kanell, ajc, 9 June 2022 The problem is the Iranians see the writing on the table, writing on the wall, which is: clearly the administration is desperate to get back in it, just like the Obama administration was desperate to get into the agreement in the first place. — CBS News, 8 June 2022 Think jazz at Lincoln Center versus a hole-in-the-wall listening room, as a comparison. — Lauren Warnecke, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2022 The hole-in-the-wall restaurant is open all day, from 11 a.m. until 1 a.m., and 4 a.m on weekends. — Kimberly Wilson, Essence, 4 June 2022 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Russia has attempted to wall off its internet from the world but appears to recognize the potential backlash from citizens for banning the most popular services. — Rishi Iyengar, CNN, 3 June 2022 Whether used to wall off sleeping quarters in a loft or hung as art, considering clever room divider ideas can help energize a room. — Marisa Martin, Good Housekeeping, 31 May 2022 Standard diagnoses often collapse what some scientists believe are different conditions into one, whereas other diagnoses wall off conditions that are perhaps not so different at all. — New York Times, 9 May 2022 Rather than wall off such matters from state-court review, the Supreme Court could review state-court decisions that cross the line from interpreting state law to writing law. — WSJ, 17 May 2022 The White House staff led by Regan initiated a damage-control plan to wall off the president and lay the blame on Mr. McFarlane, who was no longer in the White House and lacked the influence and stature of friends such as Shultz and Weinberger. — Jerrold Schecter, BostonGlobe.com, 13 May 2022 The White House staff led by Regan initiated a damage-control plan to wall off the president and lay the blame on Mr. McFarlane, who was no longer in the White House and lacked the influence and stature of friends such as Shultz and Weinberger. — Jerrold Schecter, Washington Post, 13 May 2022 All the former directors, though, conceded that attempts to wall off public health from politics are misguided. — Lev Facher, STAT, 9 Apr. 2022 China and, increasingly, Russia have taken steps to wall off their societies, including erecting strict censorship mechanisms on their internet networks, which have cut off their citizens from foreign perspectives and some commerce. — New York Times, 22 Mar. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wall.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for wall

Noun

Middle English, from Old English weall; akin to Middle High German wall; both from Latin vallum rampart, from vallus stake, palisade; perhaps akin to Old Norse vǫlr staff — more at wale

Verb (2)

Middle English (Scots) wawlen, probably from Middle English wawil- (in wawil-eghed walleyed)

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Dictionary Entries Near wall

walky-talky

wall

wallaba

Statistics for wall

Last Updated

21 Jun 2022

Cite this Entry

“Wall.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wall. Accessed 29 Jun. 2022.

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More Definitions for wall

wall

noun

\ ˈwȯl

Kids Definition of wall

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : one of the sides of a room or building

2 : a solid structure (as of stone) built to enclose or shut off a space The property is surrounded by a brick wall.

3 : something that separates one thing from another a wall of mountains

4 : a layer of material enclosing space the heart wall the wall of a pipe

wall

verb

walled; walling

Kids Definition of wall (Entry 2 of 2)

: to build or have a wall in or around

wall

noun

\ ˈwȯl

Medical Definition of wall

: a structural layer surrounding a cavity, hollow organ, or mass of material molecules small enough to be absorbed through the intestinal wall— Josie Glausiusz muscles of the abdominal wall