From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbarrierbar‧ri‧er /ˈbæriə $ -ər/ ●●○ W3 noun [countable] 1 
PROBLEMa rule, problem etc that prevents people from doing something, or limits what they can do He advocated the removal of trade barriers.barrier to Problems with childcare remain the biggest barrier to women succeeding at work.barrier between barriers between doctors and patients2 PREVENTa type of fence or gate that prevents people from moving in a particular direction Crowds burst through the barriers and ran onto the pitch.3 SEPARATEa physical object that keeps two areas, people etc apartbarrier between The mountains form a natural barrier between the two countries.4 → the 10-second/40% etc barrier → sound barrier, crash barrierCOLLOCATIONSADJECTIVES/NOUN + barriertrade barriers (=things such as taxes that make trade between countries difficult)The aim was to remove trade barriers and open up free markets.the language barrier (=the problem of understanding people who do not speak the same language)Living in China was hard for me at first because of the language barrier.cultural/racial/class barriersSport is a sure way to break down racial barriers.social barriersThe Internet allows people of all ages to interact without the usual social barriers.technical/legal/political barriersMost of the technical barriers have been solved.artificial barriersThey were committed to breaking down the artificial barriers to women’s achievement.regulatory barriersRegulatory barriers have been an obstacle to international co-operation between police forces.bureaucratic barriersThis is one of many bureaucratic barriers preventing the unemployed from claiming benefit.institutional/organizational barriersInstitutional barriers limit what can be achieved.verbsbreak/tear down barriersMost companies have broken down the old barriers of status among the workers.cross/transcend barriers (=avoid barriers that usually exist)Music has the great advantage of crossing cultural barriers.remove/eliminate/lift barriersWill this remove the barriers to change?overcome barriersThere are still many more barriers that need to be overcome.reduce/lower barriersWe should be reducing barriers to imports from poor countries.erect/build/put up barriersSome kids have erected emotional barriers that stop them from learning.create barriersUniforms are one of the things that create barriers.
PROBLEMa rule, problem etc that prevents people from doing something, or limits what they can do He advocated the removal of trade barriers.barrier to Problems with childcare remain the biggest barrier to women succeeding at work.barrier between barriers between doctors and patients2 PREVENTa type of fence or gate that prevents people from moving in a particular direction Crowds burst through the barriers and ran onto the pitch.3 SEPARATEa physical object that keeps two areas, people etc apartbarrier between The mountains form a natural barrier between the two countries.4 → the 10-second/40% etc barrier → sound barrier, crash barrierCOLLOCATIONSADJECTIVES/NOUN + barriertrade barriers (=things such as taxes that make trade between countries difficult)The aim was to remove trade barriers and open up free markets.the language barrier (=the problem of understanding people who do not speak the same language)Living in China was hard for me at first because of the language barrier.cultural/racial/class barriersSport is a sure way to break down racial barriers.social barriersThe Internet allows people of all ages to interact without the usual social barriers.technical/legal/political barriersMost of the technical barriers have been solved.artificial barriersThey were committed to breaking down the artificial barriers to women’s achievement.regulatory barriersRegulatory barriers have been an obstacle to international co-operation between police forces.bureaucratic barriersThis is one of many bureaucratic barriers preventing the unemployed from claiming benefit.institutional/organizational barriersInstitutional barriers limit what can be achieved.verbsbreak/tear down barriersMost companies have broken down the old barriers of status among the workers.cross/transcend barriers (=avoid barriers that usually exist)Music has the great advantage of crossing cultural barriers.remove/eliminate/lift barriersWill this remove the barriers to change?overcome barriersThere are still many more barriers that need to be overcome.reduce/lower barriersWe should be reducing barriers to imports from poor countries.erect/build/put up barriersSome kids have erected emotional barriers that stop them from learning.create barriersUniforms are one of the things that create barriers. Examples from the Corpus
barrier• The automatic barrier lifted as we drove up.• Only a flimsy barrier stops the crowd from spilling onto the field.• Preoccupation with status itself may be the greatest barrier to intellectual achievement.• a plexiglas barrier• The driver slowed down as he approached the police barrier.• Baseball has had four black managers since Jackie Robinson broke the sport's racial barrier in 1947.• Politically and diplomatically, the barriers against their use by a First World country are massive.• We have begun the job of raising educational standards and breaking down the barriers between the vocational and the academic routes.• Still, the barriers can be crossed.• Historically, three barriers have slowed the development of international networks.• Their attempt to reduce trade barriers failed.• The police put up barriers to hold back the crowds.barrier to• A lack of education is a barrier to many good jobs.natural barrier• This can result from government regulation or from other natural barriers.Origin barrier (1300-1400) Old French barriere, from barre; → BAR1 