fort

noun

ˈfȯrt 

1

: a strong or fortified place

especially : a fortified place occupied only by troops and surrounded with such works as a ditch, rampart, and parapet : fortification

2

: a permanent army post

—often used in place names

Synonyms of fort

• fortress
• stronghold
• fortification
• citadel
• castle
• bastion

Examples of fort in a Sentence

They captured the fort after a long battle.

a series of forts along the frontier

Recent Examples on the Web

It was founded as a Spanish presidio, or fort, in the late 1700s. — Lauren Villagran, USA Today, 28 June 2026

But everyday people expressed their political outrage time and again, throwing rocks at and demolishing the houses of government officials, torching the king’s ships and forts and, eventually, marching to battle. — Robert Parkinson, The Conversation, 24 June 2026

And the locations are amazing — the shootout occurs at the fort of Sant’Andrea that nobody really knows anything about in Venice. — Todd Gilchrist, IndieWire, 24 June 2026

The studio setting opened up sonic possibilities unavailable inside a fort. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 22 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English forte, from Anglo-French fort, from fort, adjective, strong, from Latin fortis

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing fort

• hold down the fort
• hold the fort

Rhymes for fort

• bort
• corte
• court
• dort
• mort
• norte
• ort
• port
• porte
• quart
• short
• snort

Kids Definition

fort

noun

ˈfō(ə)rt 

ˈfȯ(ə)rt

1

: a strong or fortified place

2

: a permanent army post