tripwire en · NOUN
Etymology
From trip + wire.
Meanings
-
A cord or wire arranged so that when snagged or pulled by an intruder, it will trigger a detector or trap or a device, such as a land mine.
They watched the two ghost-hunters run own the corridor and go crashing over the trip-wire.
1971, Richard Carpenter, Catweazle and the Magic Zodiac, Harmondsworth: Puffin Books, page 119:Thirteen people were injured in August 1957 when this Bristol freighter skidded on the runway at Southend Airport when landing with a flight from Calais. It ploughed through the boundary fence, but thankfully stopped short of the railway and the 1,500V overhead wires. A tripwire was installed on this section of Shenfield-Southend line to warn train drivers of instances such as this.
2020 December 30, Tim Dunn, “The railway's mechanical marvels”, in Rail, page 58, photo caption:Seeing the tripwire of a nearby bouncing Betty gave us cold chills, and we moved all the more slowly through the woods.
-
(figuratively) Any means of detecting intruders or attackers.
The continued presence of U.S. troops as a tripwire force in Macedonia is an increasingly risky venture.
1994, Diplomat, volume 5, page 67:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| trip wire | alternative | lexicographic | |
| tripwires | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Relateds
Synonyms
Translations (17)
ga sreang thuisle (a passive triggering mechanism) · cy weiren faglu (a passive triggering mechanism) · mi waea whakahīrau (a passive triggering mechanism) · nl struikeldraad (a passive triggering mechanism) · lt atotampa (a passive triggering mechanism) · de Stolperdraht (a passive triggering mechanism) · sv snubbeltråd (a passive triggering mechanism) · cmn 絆馬索 /绊马索 (a passive triggering mechanism) · cmn 絆索 /绊索 (a passive triggering mechanism) · pl potykacz (a passive triggering mechanism) · ja トリップワイヤー (a passive triggering mechanism) · ru про́волочная нить-растя́жка (a passive triggering mechanism) · da snubletråd (a passive triggering mechanism) · nl valstrik (a passive triggering mechanism) · ru про́волока взрыва́теля (a passive triggering mechanism) · fi kompastuslanka (a passive triggering mechanism) · fr fil de détente (a passive triggering mechanism)