Chainlink

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A fencing system consisting of linked metal loops designed to provide security and enclosure forms a barrier around areas
2. A barrier created from numerous metal loops that are interlocked to form a flexible but secure enclosure
3. A security fence constructed by joining wire loops together in a diamond pattern to surround and protect an area

Etymology: Chainlink fencing is made by weaving a single wire into a diamond mesh of interlocking loops, and the name simply joins two ordinary words: "chain," a series of connected metal rings, and "link," one of those individual rings. The fence is essentially a chain stretched into a flat net, so the compound describes exactly what the material is. The "link" half has a wider family history than its sense here suggests. In English it has long meant a single ring or loop of a chain, and the same idea extends to any connection between things, which is why we speak of a link between two events or a link on a website. Chainlink fencing applies the older, physical meaning, while the abstract senses developed alongside it.

Synonyms: link, chain