fortification

noun

ˌfȯr-tə-fə-ˈkā-shən How to pronounce fortification (audio)
Definition of fortificationnext
as in fortress
a structure or place from which one can resist attack defenders at the border fortifications preparing for an attack

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fortification The discovery was made beneath an Israelite-period ritual deposit and adjacent to an ancient Canaanite fortification wall, according to the excavation team. — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 19 July 2026 Layered air-defense systems Iran complements physical fortification with air-defense systems positioned around strategically important military and industrial areas. — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 14 July 2026 Spanish forces completed the coquina stone fortress in 1695 on the site of an earlier wooden fortification. — Lane Degregory, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 July 2026 The serene and sumptuous rooms at Patina have tatami mat daybeds plus washi paper headboards inspired by Osaka Castle’s impressive granite fortifications. — Kathryn Romeyn, Travel + Leisure, 7 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for fortification
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fortification
  1. fortress
  2. stronghold
  3. citadel
  4. bastion
  5. castle
  6. fort
Noun
  • Another day trip option is the hilltop town of Erice, where there's a medieval fortress that's over 2,500 years old.
    — Megan Rose Murray, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Cage plays Roy, a gifted con artist with obsessive-compulsive disorder whose tics, phobias and elaborate rituals have turned his immaculate home into a fortress against the world.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of fortress
Noun
  • The military has increasingly used airstrikes to counter opposition forces, including the armed People’s Defense Forces in Sagaing region, a stronghold of armed resistance.
    — Grant Peck, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026
  • In the Almería suburb of La Cañada, one of Vox’s strongholds, those talking points are producing results.
    — Vasco Cotovio, CNN Money, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of stronghold
Noun
  • One night, a cockroach breaches his citadel, and Pratt swiftly dispatches it.
    — Asim Ali, Time, 1 Aug. 2026
  • Laelaps was sent to chase a fox that was terrorizing the Cadmea, a citadel.
    — Maddie Rhodes, USA Today, 24 July 2026
Definition of citadel
Noun
  • The city’s standing as a bastion of British literature, theatre, and classical music means that festivals are also a major draw year-round, like February’s Bath BachFest and the Children’s Literature Festival in September.
    — Paul Jebara, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Aug. 2026
  • President Emmanuel Macron and others who regard Europe as the last bastion of liberal Western values?
    — Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of bastion
Noun
  • No matter the time of year, there’s no shortage of iconic attractions in Edinburgh, from its massive castle to Calton Hill and Mary King’s Close, a subterranean living museum beneath the Royal Mile.
    — Paul Jebara, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Balmoral has been the summer residence of the British royal family since the reign of Queen Victoria, whose husband, Prince Albert, purchased the castle and the surrounding 7,000 acres in 1845.
    — Roberta Mercuri, Vanity Fair, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of castle
Noun
  • The fort is about a 75-mile drive southwest from downtown Raleigh.
    — Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Fighting valiantly but doomed by a lack of supplies, soldiers surrendered the fort on this day in 1864, bringing the Battle of Mobile Bay to its end.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of fort

Browse Nearby Words

forthwith
fortification
fortifications
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Cite this Entry

“Fortification.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fortification. Accessed 24 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on fortification

Nglish: Translation of fortification for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about fortification

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