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Meaning & use

tripwire

noun·Advanced

Last updated

UK/ˈtrɪpwaɪə/
US/ˈtrɪpwaɪər/

Meanings

  1. nouncountable

    A thin wire or cord stretched low across the ground that sets off a trap, alarm, or weapon when someone touches it.

    Grammar: Countable: one tripwire, two tripwires. Often used with verbs like set, trigger, or trip.

    Patterns

    • set a tripwire
    • trip a tripwire
    • a tripwire triggers something

    The soldiers marked the path so that no one would trip a tripwire in the dark.

    A tripwire connected to a flare ran across the garden gate.

    Engineers laid a tripwire along the fence to alert the guards.

  2. nouncountablefigurative

    A situation or limit that, once reached, causes a strong reaction or a bigger conflict.

    Grammar: Figurative use; often followed by 'for' to name the group or issue involved.

    Patterns

    • a tripwire for something
    • act as a tripwire
    • cross a tripwire

    The new tax became a tripwire for public anger.

    Analysts warned that the border incident could act as a tripwire for wider conflict.

    Any change to the pension rules is seen as a political tripwire.

Word forms

pluraltripwires

Common combinations

set a tripwire
They set a tripwire across the doorway before leaving.
trip a tripwire
The deer tripped a tripwire and set off the alarm.
a tripwire triggers something
The tripwire triggered a loud siren.
a political tripwire
Immigration has long been a political tripwire in that country.
act as a tripwire
The clause acts as a tripwire that forces both sides to negotiate.

Synonyms and how they differ

trap
A trap is the whole device that catches or harms; a tripwire is only the wire that sets such a device off.
sensor
A sensor detects movement electronically; a tripwire usually works by being physically pulled or broken.

Word family

trip verb
To catch your foot on something and fall, or to make a device start working.
wire noun
A thin, flexible thread of metal.

Commonly confused: tripwire or trip wire?

tripwire vs trip wire

Some writers spell it as two words, but the standard form is one word: tripwire.

Practice

The guards ___ a tripwire across the path to warn them of intruders.

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