picket fence

noun

1. a fence consisting of pickets or pales nailed to horizontal stringers between upright posts.

picket fence

noun

1. a fence consisting of pickets supported at close regular intervals by being driven into the ground, by interlacing with strong wire, or by nailing to horizontal timbers fixed to posts in the ground

Word History and Origins

Origin of picket fence¹

An Americanism dating back to 1790–1800

Example Sentences

There’s a white picket fence and a nice house, but there are still racists and wife-beaters.

From Los Angeles Times

A two-storey houseboat - complete with a white picket fence - was towed through San Francisco Bay after the owners were asked to leave Redwood City marina.

From BBC

The Quencher may not be a house with a white picket fence, but it still offers a level of status for those struggling to achieve it.

From Salon

I look over the white picket fence that separates us, me in my lavish, marble-appointed castle and them, with their quaint Craftsman that could maybe use a fresh coat of paint and some landscaping.

From Los Angeles Times

The compound is surrounded by a white picket fence, as if this were just another slice of residential Americana.

From Los Angeles Times