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fortress - 5 dictionary results

for⋅tress

  [fawr-tris]
Use fortress in a Sentence
–noun
1. a large fortified place; a fort or group of forts, often including a town; citadel.
2. any place of exceptional security; stronghold.
Origin:
1300–50; ME forteresse < OF < VL *fortaricia (cf. ML fortalitia), equiv. to L fort(is) strong + -ar-, formative of uncertain meaning +-icia -ice
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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for·tress   (fôr'trĭs)   
n.  A fortified place, especially a large, permanent military stronghold that often includes a town.

[Middle English forteress, from Old French, from Medieval Latin fortalitia, from Latin fortis, strong; see bhergh-2 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Fortress

For"tress\, n.; pl. Fortresses. [F. forteresse, OF. forteresce, fortelesce, LL. foralitia, fr. L. fortis strong. See Fort, and cf. Fortalice.] A fortified place; a large and permanent fortification, sometimes including a town; a fort; a castle; a stronghold; a place of defense or security.

Syn: Fortress, Fortification, Castle, Citadel.

Usage: A fortress is constructed for military purposes only, and is permanently garrisoned; a fortification is built to defend harbors, cities, etc.; a castle is a fortress of early times which was ordinarily a palatial dwelling; a citadel is the stronghold of a fortress or city, etc.

Fortress

For"tress\, v. t. To furnish with a fortress or with fortresses; to guard; to fortify. --Shak.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : fortress
Spanish: fortaleza, fuerte,
German: die Festung,
Japanese: 要塞
More Translations »

fortress 
c.1330, from O.Fr. forteresse "strong place," var. of fortelesse, from M.L. fortalitia, from L. fortis "strong" + Eng. -ess, a fairly uncommon suffix (duress, largess being other examples), from L. -itia, forming nouns of quality or condition.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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