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rail: Meaning and Definition of
rail
Pronunciation: (rāl), [key]
— n.
a bar of wood or metal fixed horizontally for any of various purposes, as for a support, barrier, fence, or railing.
a fence; railing.
one of two fences marking the inside and outside boundaries of a racetrack.
one of a pair of steel bars that provide the running surfaces for the wheels of locomotives and railroad cars. See illus. under
the railroad as a means of transportation: to travel by rail.
stocks or bonds of railroad companies.
a horizontal member capping a bulwark.
any of various horizontal members framing panels or the like, as in a system of paneling, paneled door, window sash, or chest of drawers. Cf..
a line of cocaine crystals or powder for inhaling through the nose.
—v.t.
to furnish or enclose with a rail or rails.
rail
Pronunciation: (rāl), [key]
— v.i.
to utter bitter complaint or vehement denunciation (often fol. by at or against): to rail at fate.
—v.t.
to bring, force, etc., by railing.
rail
Pronunciation: (rāl), [key]
— n.
any of numerous birds of the family Rallidae, that have short wings, a narrow body, long toes, and a harsh cry and inhabit grasslands, forests, and marshes in most parts of the world.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.