1
a
: an ornamental cord or ribbon
untied the cordon that fastened his cloak
b
2
a
: a line of troops or of military posts enclosing an area to prevent passage
b
: a line of persons or objects around a person or place
a cordon of police
3
: an espalier especially of a fruit tree trained as a single horizontal shoot or two diverging horizontal shoots in a single line
cordoned; cordoning; cordons
: to form a protective or restrictive cordon (see cordon entry 1 sense 2) around
—usually used with off
Police cordoned off the area around the crime scene.
Examples of cordon in a Sentence
Noun
A cordon of police kept protesters away from the building.
Recent Examples on the Web
Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
Inside the cordons, a mixture of elderly German peace activists outfitted in antinuclear T-shirts had lived long enough to have the experience of being joined by a much younger group of protesters in keffiyehs carrying placards and Palestinian flags.
—Thomas Meaney, Harper's Magazine, 26 Apr. 2024
Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2023
Some energy-company insiders have discussed ringfencing assets marked for divestiture in new legal entities that would essentially cordon them off, rather than risk their falling back into Russian hands, said one executive briefed on the discussions.
—Christopher M. Matthews and Jenny Strasburg, WSJ, 1 Mar. 2022
See all Example Sentences for cordon 
Noun
The inmate, a pale middle-aged man, was led out by a cordon of guards.
—Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
Inside the cordons, a mixture of elderly German peace activists outfitted in antinuclear T-shirts had lived long enough to have the experience of being joined by a much younger group of protesters in keffiyehs carrying placards and Palestinian flags.
—Thomas Meaney, Harper's Magazine, 26 Apr. 2024
Verb
Unlike many defensive coordinators who cordon themselves off in the faraway comfort of the press box, Lynn sees everything from the sideline.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2023
Some energy-company insiders have discussed ringfencing assets marked for divestiture in new legal entities that would essentially cordon them off, rather than risk their falling back into Russian hands, said one executive briefed on the discussions.
—Christopher M. Matthews and Jenny Strasburg, WSJ, 1 Mar. 2022
See all Example Sentences for cordon
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cordon.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near cordon
Cite this Entry
“Cordon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cordon. Accessed 7 Jul. 2024.
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