- 1 the line that divides two countries or areas; the land near this line a national park on the border between Kenya and Tanzania Denmark’s border with Germany in the US, near the Canadian border Nevada’s northern border to cross the border to flee across/over the border border guards/controls a border dispute/incident a border town/state (figurative) It is difficult to define the border between love and friendship. Synonymsborderboundary frontierThese are all words for a line that marks the edge of something and separates it from other areas or things.border the line that separates two countries or areas; the land near this line:a national park on the border between Kenya and Tanzaniaboundary a line that marks the edges of an area of land and separates it from other areas:The fence marked the boundary between my property and hers.frontier (British English) the line that separates two countries or areas; the land near this line:The river formed the frontier between the land of the Saxons and that of the Danes.which word?The point where you cross from one country to another is usually called the border. In British English it can also be called the frontier, but this is often in a context of wildness, danger and uncertainty:The rebels control the frontier and the surrounding area. The line on a map that shows the border of a country can be called the boundary but ‘boundary’ is not used when you cross from one country to another:After the war the national boundaries were redrawn. Thousands of immigrants cross the boundary every day. Boundary can also be a physical line between two places, for example between property belonging to two different people, marked by a fence or wall:the boundary fence/wall between the propertiesPatterns across/along/on/over a/the border/boundary/frontier at the boundary/frontier the border/boundary/frontier with a place the northern/southern/eastern/western border/boundary/frontier a national/common/disputed border/boundary/frontier Wordfindertouristabroad, backpack, border, guide, passport, resort, sightseeing, tourist, travel, visainternational Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectiveopen, closed, porous, … verb + borderarrive at, reach, stop at, … border + nouncrossing, post, region, … prepositionacross a/the border, over a/the border, along a/the border, … phrasesnorth of the border, south of the border, on both sides of the border, … See full entry See related entries: International relations
- 2 a strip around the edge of something such as a picture or a piece of cloth a pillowcase with a lace border Oxford Collocations Dictionary adjectivewide, narrow, decorative, … verb + borderhave, draw prepositionwith a/the border, border around, border round, … See full entry
- 3(in a garden) a strip of soil which is planted with flowers, along the edge of the grass herbaceous borders See related entries: In the garden Word Originlate Middle English: from Old French bordeure; ultimately of Germanic origin and related to board.Extra examples Brazil has a common border with most South American countries. Ethiopia shares its longest border with Somalia. He drove us right up to the Russian border. Poland has a common border with Germany. She drew a decorative border around the picture. The tablecloth has a narrow lace border. There has been fighting along the border. There has been fighting on both sides of the border. They slipped across the border at nightfall. We were stopped on the border. a farm on the border of Cumbria and Yorkshire a white handkerchief with a blue border the border between Austria and Switzerland the border with Mexico to smuggle goods across the border I live in a small town in the US, near the Canadian border. The back garden is mostly lawn with herbaceous borders. The incident happened on Nevada’s northern border. The treaty fixed Denmark’s new border with Germany. They spent a week in a national park on the border between Kenya and Tanzania. Thousands of illegal immigrants cross the border every day.
noun jump to other results
BrE BrE//ˈbɔːdə(r)//; NAmE NAmE//ˈbɔːrdər//
International relations, In the garden
Check pronunciation: border
