Wall (noun) Definition, Meaning & Examples

noun

any of various permanent upright constructions having a length much greater than the thickness and presenting a continuous surface except where pierced by doors, windows, etc.: used for shelter, protection, or privacy, or to subdivide interior space, to support floors, roofs, or the like, to retain earth, to fence in an area, etc.
a rampart raised for defensive purposes.
an immaterial or intangible barrier, obstruction, etc., suggesting a wall: a wall of prejudice.
a wall-like, enclosing part, thing, mass, etc.: a wall of fire;a wall of troops.
an embankment to prevent flooding, as a levee or sea wall.
the outermost film or layer of structural material protecting, surrounding, and defining the physical limits of an object: the wall of a blood cell.
a line of defenders standing shoulder to shoulder in an attempt to block a free kick with their bodies.
Mining.

adjective

verb (used with object)

to enclose, shut off, divide, protect, border, etc., with or as if with a wall (often followed by in or off): to wall the yard; to wall in the play area;He is walled in by lack of opportunity.
to seal or fill (a doorway or other opening) with a wall: to wall an unused entrance.
to seal or entomb (something or someone) within a wall (usually followed by up): The workmen had walled up the cat quite by mistake.

Idioms

to become tense or frantic: climbing the walls with boredom.
to force into a desperate situation; humiliate or ruin completely: Not content with merely winning the match, they used every opportunity to push the inferior team to the wall.
to break out of prison: Roadblocks have been set up in an effort to capture several convicts who went over the wall.
go to the wall,

to be defeated in a conflict or competition; yield.
to fail in business, especially to become bankrupt.
to be put aside or forgotten.
to take an extreme and determined position or measure: I'd go to the wall to stop him from resigning.

(of long-distance runners) to reach a point in a race, usually after 20 miles, when the body's fuels are virtually depleted and willpower becomes crucial to be able to finish.
off the wall, Slang.

beyond the realm of acceptability or reasonableness: The figure you quoted for doing the work is off the wall.
markedly out of the ordinary; eccentric; bizarre: Some of the clothes in the fashion show were too off the wall for the average customer.

placed against a wall to be executed by a firing squad.
in a crucial or critical position, especially one in which defeat or failure seems imminent: Unless sales improve next month, the company will be up against the wall.

into an acutely frantic, frustrated, or irritated state: The constant tension in the office is driving everyone up the wall.

noun

a vertical construction made of stone, brick, wood, etc, with a length and height much greater than its thickness, used to enclose, divide, or support
(as modifier)

a structure or rampart built to protect and surround a position or place for defensive purposes
any lining, membrane, or investing part that encloses or bounds a bodily cavity or structure
a vertical or almost vertical smooth rock face
anything that suggests a wall in function or effect
to try to achieve something impossible
to force into an awkward situation
to be ruined; collapse financially
to cause to become crazy or furious
to become crazy or furious
to be in a very difficult situation
See off-the-wall
See wall-to-wall

verb (tr)

AllDefiNitions