1 C1 neutral
To secure or block a door, gate, or hatch by placing a bar across it.
"The innkeeper barred down the cellar door before the storm hit."
separable
bar down
C1 neutral separable transitive/intransitive
To secure or block something by placing a bar across it; in ice hockey slang, a shot that hits the crossbar and goes down into the net.
In plain English
To lock something shut using a bar across it; in hockey, to score by hitting the puck off the crossbar into the goal.
What does "bar down" mean?
2 meanings, ordered from most common to least. Color-coded by CEFR level.
2 C1 idiomatic slang
(Ice hockey slang) A shot that hits the underside of the crossbar and drops down into the net for a goal.
"He rifled a bar-down shot in the final minute to win the game."
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To bring a bar down across something to secure it — relatively transparent in the physical sense.
Actually means
To lock something shut using a bar across it; in hockey, to score by hitting the puck off the crossbar into the goal.
Usage tip
The general sense is rare in everyday speech. The ice hockey sense is very specific North American sports slang and is celebrated as a particularly impressive shot.
Words that pair with "bar down"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
door gate hatch crossbar net shot
How to conjugate "bar down"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
bar down
I/you/we/they
3rd person
bars down
he/she/it
Past simple
bared down
yesterday
Past participle
bared down
have + pp
-ing form
baring down
continuous
Hear "bar down" in the wild
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