- (n.) To restrict or confine, as if by a bar; to hinder; to obstruct; to prevent; to prohibit; as, to bar the entrance of evil; distance bars our intercourse; the statute bars my right; the right is barred by time; a release bars the plaintiff's recovery; -- sometimes with up.
- (n.) Any railing that divides a room or office or hall of assembly, in order to reserve a space for those having special privileges; as, the bar of the House of Commons.
- (n.) A vein or dike crossing a lode.
- (n.) A barrier or counter, over which liquors and food are passed to customers; hence, the portion of the room behind the counter where liquors for sale are kept.
- (n.) A broad shaft or band or stripe; as, a bar of light; a bar of color.
- (n.) A slender strip of wood which divides and supports the glass of a window; a sash bar.
- (n.) To fasten with a bar; as, to bar a door or gate.
- (n.) A bank of sand, gravel or other matter, especially at the mouth of a river or harbor, obstructing navigation.
- (n.) The part of the crust of a horse's hoof which is bent inwards towards the frog at the heel on each side, and extends into the center of the sole.
- (n.) The place in court where prisoners are stationed for arraignment, trial or sentence.
- (n.) The whole body of lawyers licensed in a court or district; the legal profession.
- (n.) Anything which obstructs, hinders or prevents; an obstruction; a barrier.
- (n.) The space between the tusks and grinders in the upper jaw of a horse, in which the bit is placed.
- (n.) A drilling or tamping rod.
- (n.) Any tribunal; as, the bar of public opinion; the bar of God.
- (n.) An indefinite quantity of some substance, so shaped as to be long in proportion to its breadth and thickness; as, a bar of gold or of lead; a bar of soap.
- (n.) To except; to exclude by exception.
- (n.) An ordinary, like a fess but narrower, occupying only one fifth part of the field.
- (n.) The railing that incloses the place which counsel occupy in courts of justice. Hence, the phrase at the bar of the court signifies in open court.
- (n.) A vertical line across the staff. Bars divide the staff into spaces which represent measures, and are themselves called measures.
- (n.) A gatehouse of a castle or fortified town.
- (n.) To cross with one or more stripes or lines.
- (n.) A special plea constituting a sufficient answer to plaintiff's action.
- (n.) A piece of wood, metal or other material, long in proportion to its breadth or thickness, used as a lever and for various other purposes, but especially for a hindrance, obstruction or fastening; as, the bars of a fence or gate; the bar of a door.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
| APA | Webster's. (2011). bar. Retrieved September 20, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/bar/definitions/1978258 |
| Chicago | Webster's. 2011. "bar" http://smartdefine.org/bar/definitions/1978258 (accessed September 20, 2026). |
| Harvard | Webster's 2011, bar, Smart Define, viewed 20 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/bar/definitions/1978258>. |
| MLA | Webster's. "bar" 27 May 2011. Web. 20 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/bar/definitions/1978258> |