as in wall
a physical object that blocks the way
there was a big barrier plastered with signs saying "Keep Out" around the trash compactor
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of barrier
That's in part because the mountain is dangerously rugged and a natural barrier, and in part to allow pilgrims from both countries to access the site built in the 1930s.
—
Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 13 May 2026
Capacity remains the key barrier, with Habben Jansen suggesting that there are not enough ships in its fleet to facilitate another network overhaul just yet.
—Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 13 May 2026
And that car then made a corner and slammed into a concrete jersey barrier on the beltway.
—Rachel Raposas, PEOPLE, 13 May 2026
Policymakers can and should lower barriers to AVs launching in more places.
—Kevin Frazier, Fortune, 13 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for barrier
Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 13 May 2026
Capacity remains the key barrier, with Habben Jansen suggesting that there are not enough ships in its fleet to facilitate another network overhaul just yet.
—Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 13 May 2026
And that car then made a corner and slammed into a concrete jersey barrier on the beltway.
—Rachel Raposas, PEOPLE, 13 May 2026
Policymakers can and should lower barriers to AVs launching in more places.
—Kevin Frazier, Fortune, 13 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for barrier
Recent Examples of Synonyms for barrier
Noun
-
Earlier this year, the line was mostly green, meaning that a steel wall would traverse much of Big Bend National Park and Big Bend Ranch State Park.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
14 May 2026
-
Riley was also robbed of extra bases in the second inning on a leaping catch at the wall by center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
13 May 2026
Noun
-
There, in the scorching desert, guarded by fences and video surveillance, this fish swims around in a sunken fishbowl made of rock that's been its only natural home for millennia.—
Nell Greenfieldboyce,
NPR,
7 May 2026
-
No one was keeping a distance chart on the launches, but all of them easily cleared the fence, which measures 200 feet in left field, 215 to center.—
Don Norcross,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 May 2026
Noun
-
The able-bodied men moved wooden tables, benches, and chairs together to make a barricade against the water.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
4 May 2026
-
Highway 32 remains partially closed, with barricades still in place at Highway 110 and Browntown Road.—
Christopher Harris,
CBS News,
4 May 2026
Noun
-
The Sixers, however, hadn’t considered the circumstances, the stakes, the resilience of an opponent with far bigger fish to fry than a second-round obstacle.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
9 May 2026
-
All of this creates significant obstacles to its use as fuel for nuclear weapons.—
Benjamin Weinthal,
FOXNews.com,
9 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Barrier.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barrier. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
