stronghold

noun

strong·​hold ˈstrȯŋ-ˌhōld 

1

: a fortified place

2

a

: a place of security or survival

… one of the last strongholds of the ancient Gaelic language …

—George Holmes

b

: a place dominated by a particular group or marked by a particular characteristic

a Republican/Democratic stronghold

strongholds of snobbery

—Lionel Trilling

Synonyms of stronghold

• fortress
• bastion
• citadel
• fortification
• castle
• fort

Examples of stronghold in a Sentence

The area is a Republican stronghold.

The rebels retreated to their mountain stronghold.

the last stronghold of the endangered deer

Recent Examples on the Web

Before this dilemma can play out, Hal triggers an Indiana Jones–esque booby trap inside the compound’s stronghold, summoning Macon’s men with their advanced weaponry. — Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 7 Sep. 2026

Denmark hopes to foster a closer relationship with Florida, Sorensen said, because the two are strongholds in life sciences and maritime industries. — Zoey Thomas, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2026

But because the system is a stronghold for the endangered Alabama cave shrimp, monitoring teams have explored the cave nearly every month since the early 1990s. — Elizabeth Anne Brown, Scientific American, 2 Sep. 2026

That historic exodus helped turn the Republic of Korea, as South Korea is formally known, into a stronghold of the Christian faith and one of the world’s biggest exporters of missionaries. — Literary Hub, 2 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for stronghold

• ahold
• behold
• billfold
• blindfold
• cajoled
• consoled
• controlled
• cotswold
• eightfold
• enfold
• enrolled
• extolled

Kids Definition

stronghold

noun

strong·​hold ˈstrȯŋ-ˌhōld 

: fortress