Railing

Railing

Noun · /ˈreɪlɪŋ/ · a fence or barrier made of rails; also: verbal abuse

Definition

A railing is a protective barrier consisting of one or more horizontal bars supported by vertical posts, used alongside stairs, balconies, bridges, and paths to prevent falls and guide movement. The word also functions as a present participle and noun from the verb to rail, meaning to complain or protest loudly and bitterly: she spent the evening railing against the new policy.

Origin

From Old French reille, an iron bar, from Latin regula, a straight rod or ruler. By the 16th century the word rail referred to horizontal bars in fences and enclosures. The verbal sense — to rail against someone — derives from Old French railler, to mock or ridicule, a separate etymological root that converged with the same spelling in English.