- 1a long, vertical, solid structure, made of stone, brick, or concrete, that surrounds, divides, or protects an area of land The fields were divided by stone walls. He sat on the wall and watched the others playing. see sea wall
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2any of the vertical sides of a building or room I'm going to paint the walls white and the ceiling pink. Hang the picture on the wall opposite the window. She leaned against the wall. Topic CollocationsDecorating and Home Improvementhouses
- refurbish/renovate a building/a house
- convert a building/house/room into homes/offices/ apartments/condominiums/condos
- extend/enlarge a house/building/room/kitchen
- build an addition (on/to something)/a sunroom/a deck
- knock down/demolish a house/home/building/wall
- knock out/down the wall separating two rooms
- furnish/paint/repaint a home/house/apartment/room
- be decorated in bright colors/in a traditional style/with flowers/with paintings
- paint/plaster the walls/ceiling
- hang/put up/strip off/remove (the) wallpaper
- install/replace/remove the bathroom fixtures
- build/put up shelves
- lay wooden flooring/timber decking/floor tiles/a carpet/a patio floor
- put up/hang/take down a picture/painting/poster/curtain
- do carpentry/the plumbing/the wiring (yourself)
- make home improvements
- add/install central heating/underfloor heating/insulation
- install double-glazing/a smoke alarm
- insulate your house/your home/the walls/the pipes/the tanks/the attic
- fix/repair a roof/a leak/a pipe/the plumbing/a leaking faucet
- block/clog (up)/unblock/unclog a pipe/sink/drain
- make/drill/fill a hole
- hammer (in)/pull out/remove a nail
- tighten/loosen/remove a screw
- saw/cut/treat/stain/varnish/paint wood
- 3something that forms a barrier or stops you from making progress The boat struck a solid wall of water. The investigators were confronted by a wall of silence.
- 4the outer layer of something hollow such as an organ of the body or a cell of an animal or a plant the abdominal wall the wall of an artery Idioms
to keep trying to do something that will never be successful Trying to reason with them was like banging my head against a (brick) wall.
to be so full of energy or so excited that you cannot keep still The kids have been bouncing off the walls all day.
to be unable to make any progress because there is a difficulty that stops you
a person who watches others without being noticed I'd love to be a fly on the wall when he tells her the news. fly-on-the-wall documentaries (= in which people are filmed going about their normal lives as if the camera were not there)
(of a company or an organization) to fail because of lack of money Many firms have gone to the wall in this recession.
to be in a difficult situation in which you are forced to do something but are unable to make the choices that you would like We had no choice but to sell—our backs were against the wall.
to reach a point when you cannot continue or make any more progress We hit a wall and we weren't scoring. I've hit a wall with my marathon training. What do you do when you hit the wall at work?
unusual and amusing; slightly crazy Some of his ideas are really off the wall. off-the-wall ideas
used when you are talking about keeping something secret Don't let this go further than these four walls (= Don't tell anyone else who is not in the room now).
crazy or angry That noise is driving me up the wall.
used to warn people to be careful what they say because other people may be listening
the writing is on the wall, see the writing on the wall, the handwriting on the wall (saying) jump to other results
Check pronunciation: wall