Definition of "two-by-four" []

• Measuring two units by four units, especially inches. (adjective)
• Slang Small in size; boxed in or cramped: a two-by-four apartment. (adjective)
• A length of lumber that is 2 inches thick and 4 inches wide, or that is trimmed to slightly smaller dimensions. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "It's harder to dramatize a long drawn-out recessional than a sudden whack upside the head with a celestial two-by-four."
• "This is why, when people say that breast-feeding is “free,” I want to hit them with a two-by-four."
• "You can slide a two-by-four in the concrete to create this feature."