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Meaning of rail in English
Pronunciation
/reɪl/
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Verb
rail
Etymology
late Middle English: from French railler, from Provençal ralhar‘to jest’, based on an alteration of Latin rugire‘to bellow’
Definitions
1.
complain bitterly
2.
enclose with rails
Examples
« rail in the old graves »
3.
provide with rails
Examples
« The yard was railed »
4.
separate with a railing
Examples
« rail off the crowds from the Presidential palace »
5.
convey (goods etc.) by rails
Examples
« fresh fruit are railed from Italy to Belgium »
6.
travel by rail or train
Examples
« They railed from Rome to Venice »
« She trained to Hamburg »
7.
lay with rails
Examples
« hundreds of miles were railed out here »
8.
fish with a hand-line over the rails of a boat
Examples
« They are railing for fresh fish »
9.
spread negative information about
Examples
« The Nazi propaganda vilified the Jews »
10.
criticize severely
Examples
« He fulminated against the Republicans' plan to cut Medicare »
« She railed against the bad social policies »
Noun
rail
Etymology
Middle English: from Old French reille‘iron rod’, from Latin regula‘straight stick, rule’
Definitions
1.
a barrier consisting of a horizontal bar and supports
2.
short for railway
Examples
« he traveled by rail »
« he was concerned with rail safety »
3.
a bar or bars of rolled steel making a track along which vehicles can roll
4.
a horizontal bar (usually of wood)
5.
any of numerous widely distributed small wading birds of the family Rallidae having short wings and very long toes for running on soft mud