wall

noun

\ 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

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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.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The wood for the walls was reclaimed from various houses around town. — Popular Mechanics Editors, Popular Mechanics, "How To Live Off the Grid," 10 June 2019 Rains flooded portions of the school including the Bryan Center, which is home to the University Store and Office of the school's Vice President, where a glass wall was knocked out of place, CNN affiliate WNCN said. — Hollie Silverman And Michael Guy, CNN, "3 people trapped in car die after vehicle hits tree and falls into flooded creek in North Carolina," 10 June 2019 Abdominal wall hernia related to a procedure (948) SOURCE: Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety. — Liz Kowalczyk, BostonGlobe.com, "These are the most frequent medical errors in Massachusetts," 10 June 2019 The five-bedroom, six-bathroom house comes with architectural details that include vaulted beamed ceilings, plaster walls and Mexican tile flooring. — Ebony Day, azcentral, "Scottsdale mansion with underground wine cellar and six-car garage sells for $4M," 10 June 2019 Then Trea Turner and Adam Eaton deposited 1-0 sinkers over the wall in center. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Four! Nats history torpedos Padres’ bullpen day," 9 June 2019 Currently, embassies are permitted to fly the flag on exterior walls or inside the embassies, according to NBC. — Alejandro De La Garza, Time, "Despite Trump Administration Request Denials, U.S. Embassies Are Displaying Pride Flags Around the World," 9 June 2019 After Josh Bell led off the Pittsburgh second with a walk, Colin Moran turned on an inside fastball and lined it over the right-field wall for a two-run homer. — Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Brewers 5, Pirates 3: Zach Davies becomes first starter in club history to start season 7-0," 8 June 2019 Amed Rosario drove a high fastball over the wall in right-center and Dominic Smith did likewise with a hanging slider. — Henry Schulman, SFChronicle.com, "Giants, Mark Melancon lose finale of nine-game trip, but Shaun Anderson impresses again," 6 June 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

The ice normally prevents waves from forming and locks onto beaches, walling off villages. — Dan Joling, The Seattle Times, "Pace of Bering Sea changes startles scientists," 16 Apr. 2019 Yet a federal judge last week divined an exception to this constitutional axiom by enshrining a Barack Obama order walling off 128 million acres of the Arctic and eastern seaboard from oil and gas production. — The Editorial Board, WSJ, "Entrenching the Obama Presidency," 5 Apr. 2019 The mug is made of kitchen-grade 18/8 stainless steel and is double-walled to create vacuum insulation, which will keep your hands warm and your cold beer cold. — Popular Mechanics Editors, Popular Mechanics, "The 24-Oz Yeti Rambler Was Made for Drinking a Big Beer Around the Campfire," 8 Apr. 2019 It’s walled off on two sides by hillsides dotted with large homes that offer stunning views. — John Rogers, The Seattle Times, "Hundreds mourn girl whose body was dumped on hiking trail," 26 Mar. 2019 Sitting at the foothills of the mystical Mount Taygetus, not only is this medieval walled town a UNESCO World Heritage Monument immersed in fascinating history, but the surrounding natural environment is rugged, raw, and inspiringly real. — Alex Postman, Condé Nast Traveler, "28 Places Our Travel Specialists Say You Should Go in 2019," 17 Dec. 2018 Not many business professionals will probably care about virtualization, the ability to wall off a portion of your hard drive into a virtual PC, complete with its own operating system. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Who needs Windows 10 Pro: 5 reasons to upgrade," 5 Mar. 2019 And during Trump's visit to South Korea in 2017, more than 15,000 officers provided security, using hundreds of police buses to create tight perimeters near Seoul's presidential palace to wall off anti-Trump protesters. — Kim Tong-hyung, Fox News, "A Kim Jong Un visit to Seoul? It would be surreal challenge," 20 Sep. 2018 Ahmed notes that the two concepts are rooted in a primordial tribal impulse to wall off familiar locals from (presumably prickly) outsiders. — Atossa Araxia Abrahamian, New York Times, "Can Islamic and European Civilizations Coexist?," 28 Mar. 2018

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

Statistics for wall

Last Updated

13 Jun 2019

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Time Traveler for wall

The first known use of wall was before the 12th century

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More Definitions for wall

wall

noun

English Language Learners Definition of wall

: a structure of brick, stone, etc., that surrounds an area or separates one area from another

: the structure that forms the side of a room or building

: the outer layer of something that is hollow (such as a part of the body or of a plant)

See the full definition for wall in the English Language Learners Dictionary

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