Meaning & use
cultural barrier
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
a difficulty in communication or understanding caused by differences between cultures.
Grammar: Countable: a cultural barrier, many cultural barriers. Often used in the plural.
Patterns
- a cultural barrier between people
- overcome a cultural barrier
- face cultural barriers
Language is only one cultural barrier that international students face.
The team worked hard to overcome cultural barriers in the workplace.
There can be a cultural barrier between older and younger generations.
Word forms
| plural | cultural barriers |
|---|
Common combinations
- break down cultural barriers
- Exchange programs help break down cultural barriers.
- a cultural barrier to something
- There is still a cultural barrier to women in some jobs.
- face cultural barriers
- New immigrants often face cultural barriers at work.
- cross a cultural barrier
- Good translators help us cross cultural barriers.
Synonyms and how they differ
- language barrier
- A language barrier is specifically about not sharing a language, while a cultural barrier can involve customs, values, or behavior.
- communication barrier
- Communication barrier is broader and can include technical problems, not just cultural differences.
Word family
- culture noun
- the customs, beliefs, and way of life of a group.
- cultural adjective
- connected with culture.
- culturally adverb
- in a way that relates to culture.
Commonly confused: cultural barrier or Cultural difference?
cultural barrier vs Cultural difference
A cultural difference is a neutral fact about how groups vary; a cultural barrier is a difference that causes difficulty or blocks understanding.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'cultural barrier' most naturally?
Choose one answer.
The phrase is countable, and 'between' with multiple offices calls for the plural 'cultural barriers'. The other options have wrong article or plural forms.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “cultural barrier”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.