How to Use barbed wire in a Sentence

barbed wire

noun
Definition of barbed wirenext
  • Some climbed over barbed wire and cut their way through fences.
    — Washington Post, 27 Nov. 2019
  • It was surrounded by a tall brick wall with two layers of barbed wire on top.
    — New York Times, 28 Dec. 2019
  • Schofield gallantly holds back a loop of barbed wire so that Blake might pass through; the thorns spring to life and pierce his hand.
    — Time, 24 Dec. 2019
  • The property consists of just over twelve acres protected by barbed wire fencing.
    — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 15 Nov. 2019
  • Here, families were packed into barracks surrounded by barbed wire and guard towers.
    — Brigit Katz, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Jan. 2020
  • And now the debate has detonated yet again, thanks to a 392-page book with barbed wire criss-crossing its cover.
    — Catherine E. Shoichet, CNN, 24 Jan. 2020
  • The Forest Service press release included links to two maps that showed where the barbed wire and steel fences would be installed.
    — Chelsea Curtis, azcentral, 25 Jan. 2020
  • At its peak, Amache held more than 7,300 internees, who were confined within a single square mile by barbed wire and armed guards.
    — NBC News, 16 Feb. 2020
  • The muddy terrain was littered with dead animals, dead humans, barbed wires and wreckage from exploding shells—scarcely any grass or trees in sight.
    — Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 23 Dec. 2019
  • In a camp called Al Nasr, new arrivals have pitched tents just yards from the concrete wall topped with rolls of barbed wire that marks the Turkish border.
    — New York Times, 6 Mar. 2020
  • Last year, Russia constructed a fence, topped with barbed wire, that stretches the length of the border between Crimea and the rest of Ukraine.
    — Justin Rohrlich, Quartz, 28 Nov. 2019
  • Some obstacles include monkey bars, two-story slides, crawls through mud and under barbed wire, and even a run through water while dodging dangling electrical wires.
    — Stephanie Mansour, NBC News, 19 Nov. 2019
  • Among the discoveries at the death camp that was run by the SS was a tunnel from the soldiers' bathhouse, below the barbed wire fence and into a villa outside of the camp.
    — Fox News, 1 Apr. 2020
  • Constructed of flaky juniper twigs laced together with barbed wire, metal posts and rustic gates, the site is rife with wildflowers and photo opportunities for those attuned to the details hidden among the weeds.
    — Mare Czinar, azcentral, 14 May 2020
  • The barbed wire along the walls ripped their clothes clean off.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 16 Sep. 2021
  • British flags are duct taped to lamp posts wrapped in barbed wire.
    — New York Times, 13 July 2021
  • On the roof of one shed were three ancient coils of barbed wire.
    — Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2022
  • But first, the barbed wire fence must come down, at least on the northern end of the lake.
    — Paul Eisenberg, chicagotribune.com, 27 Mar. 2022
  • To pick up the historic route, follow the old barbed wire fence to a gate near the edge of the canyon.
    — Mare Czinar, The Arizona Republic, 8 July 2022
  • The rich live behind high walls topped with barbed wire.
    — Washington Post, 19 Nov. 2021
  • Above a fence topped with barbed wire, the top of a drilling rig was visible.
    — Ian James, The Arizona Republic, 5 Feb. 2022
  • Kill it with fire, salt the earth, and cover over with concrete and barbed wire.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 13 Sep. 2021
  • Concrete barriers and barbed wire line the beach along the Sea of Azov.
    — New York Times, 9 Feb. 2022
  • The dusty camp was ringed with barbed wire and guarded by armed watchmen.
    — Amy Qin Ruth Fremson, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2022
  • The Saturn hit a dirt ravine and barbed wire fence then rolled, Garrow said.
    — Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2022
  • Tacks aren't as bad as other things like light tubes, barbed wire.
    — Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 25 Aug. 2020
  • The vehicle was parked in a secured area fenced with three rows of barbed wire on top of the fence.
    — Erik S. Hanley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 5 May 2021
  • The Smiths wrapped the next iteration with barbed wire.
    — Caitlin L. Chandler, Washington Post, 23 May 2022
  • At one well, tangles of barbed wire fence had fallen over near a rusting pump jack that was erected in the 1980s.
    — Brian Maffly, The Salt Lake Tribune, 21 Dec. 2022
  • Fan and his brother eventually ended up in Sihanoukville in a compound surrounded by a barbed wire fence.
    — Cezary Podkul, ProPublica, 13 Sep. 2022

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'barbed wire.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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