fortresses

plural of fortress
as in strongholds
a structure or place from which one can resist attack the boys built a snow fortress and then challenged the neighborhood kids to an in-your-face snowball fight

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 fortresses The structures include monasteries and fortresses that showcase the reign of the Lombards, who played a major role in the development of medieval European Christianity. — Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 28 Sep. 2026 The horse was found amid structures and artifacts that have revealed more details of military and daily life inside ancient Egyptian fortresses, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said in a Wednesday statement. — Ahmed Shawkat, CBS News, 16 Sep. 2026 One that could truly turn water into the biggest floating fortresses the world has ever seen. — Mike McRae 16, New Atlas, 16 Sep. 2026 Most of them can’t afford to outfit their own individual townhouses like armed fortresses as Swift has. — Bridget Read, Curbed, 1 Sep. 2026 The area’s landscape charms visitors with its green hills, rural farmland, and dramatic medieval castles and fortresses. — Irene S. Levine, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2026 The two studio lots also boast dozens of soundstages; century-old fortresses that would not be easily duplicated. — Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026 Once their homes are converted into makeshift fortresses of cookie boxes, scouts like Olive, Shannon Elizabeth, Ara, and Nikki—the protagonists of the documentary—get to work selling them. — Bedatri D. Choudhury, Bon Appetit Magazine, 11 Aug. 2026 Libraries 'don't want to be fortresses' Neither Jackson, UCLA, nor UC Berkeley responded to requests for comment. — Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 15 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fortresses
Noun
  • Whilst the regions that make up the former East Germany are AfD strongholds, Merz’s problem lies in the party’s rise in popularity across the country.
    — Sebastian Shukla, CNN Money, 21 Sep. 2026
  • During the final phase of the war in Gaza, Israel and the United States caused significant military and economic damage to Houthi strongholds in Yemen.
    — April Longley Alley, Foreign Affairs, 11 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • During the seven years that it was occupied by British forces, Manhattan had been ravaged by fires, picked over by looters, covered in fortifications, and swollen with refugees.
    — Eric Lach, New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The historic military fort overlooks the entrance to the Halifax Harbour and boasts old fortifications, historic artifacts, and unbeatable ocean views.
    — Kaitlyn McInnis, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
Noun
  • But now, San Bernardino, Riverside and Kern counties — once considered bastions of affordability — are all right there with them.
    — Jack Flemming, Los Angeles Times, 25 Sep. 2026
  • According to the Polish Armed Forces, the measures include the installation of Hesco bastions — wire and mesh structures filled with sand or gravel that are easy to set up as protective barriers — along with new observation and guard posts.
    — Anna Noryskiewicz, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • And yet Trump wants to turn the White House and an outpost on the Potomac into similar citadels, with little regard for why America’s capital city was named for one of its greatest examples of unadorned republican virtue.
    — Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Castellón To the north, Castellón unfolds as a mountainous marvel where medieval citadels, golden beaches, and tiny fishing villages create a landscape of contrasts, with the scent of citrus perfuming the air.
    — Condé Nast Traveler, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Medieval Décor Medieval décor is stepping out of castles and into modern homes.
    — Angelika Pokovba, Martha Stewart, 26 Sep. 2026
  • There are Resident Evil games set in Spanish castles, runaway trains, ocean liners, weird mansions, the bayou, and strange theme-park-like villages, with bespoke creatures in each.
    — Joshua Rivera, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • Much of the stone used to construct Hadrian’s Wall and its forts and milecastles was recycled over the centuries, but the stone footings largely remain, as do the flanking ditches.
    — Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Under Spanish rule, able-bodied Malay men, from teenagers to adults, were required to perform 40 days of unpaid annual labor on roads, bridges, churches, forts, piers, plantations, haciendas and mines.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026

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“Fortresses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fortresses. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

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