fortification

IPA/ˌfɔːtɪfɪˈkeɪʃn/
KK[fˌɔrtəfəkˈeʃən]IPA/ˌfɔːrtɪfɪˈkeɪʃn/

fortification — noun

  • fortificationsingular
  • fortificationsplural

1. a wall, tower, or similar structure erected around a city, castle, or military b

1.nounB2
Definition

a wall, tower, or similar structure erected around a city, castle, or military base to keep attackers out

Example

The ancient city's fortifications included a high stone wall and twelve watchtowers.

often plural for defensive structures

Hassan studied the Roman fortifications that once guarded the empire's northern border.

collocation: fortifications + guard/protect

Common collocations
  • stone fortifications
  • ancient fortifications
  • coastal fortifications
  • hilltop fortification
  • build fortifications
  • strengthen fortifications
Synonyms
  • stronghold

    Emphasises the overall defended place rather than the individual structures built to defend it

  • bastion

    A projecting part of a fortification; also used more poetically for something that upholds a principle

  • bulwark

    A defensive wall made of earth or stone; also used in figurative contexts for protection

Usage Note

Often appears in plural form (fortifications) when referring to a system of defensive structures around a single location.

Common Mistakes

The castle had a tall fortification around it.
The castle had tall fortifications around it.
For a system of walls and towers, the plural form is preferred.

2. the process of making a place stronger against attack by adding walls, weapons,

2.nounC1
Definition

the process of making a place stronger against attack by adding walls, weapons, soldiers, or other defences

Example

The fortification of the island took over two years and cost millions of dollars.

pattern: the fortification of [place]

Owen oversaw the fortification of the port after the navy warned of a possible invasion.

pattern: oversee the fortification of [place]

Common collocations
  • coastal fortification
  • fortification of the city
  • fortification of the border
  • without proper fortification
  • oversee the fortification
  • begin the fortification
Synonyms
  • strengthening

    A more general term that can apply to any type of reinforcement, not just military

  • reinforcement

    Often implies adding extra materials or troops to an existing structure

Antonyms
  • weakening

    The opposite of making something stronger

  • dismantlement

    Taking apart defences rather than building them up

Usage Note

This sense is uncountable — you cannot say 'a fortification' when referring to the process. For individual results of the process, use sense 1 instead.

Common Mistakes

The fortification of the base was a fortification that took six months.
The fortification of the base took six months.
Do not use the countable form for the process. Use sense 1's plural for the structures.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Fortification refers to the walls, towers, and other structures built to protect a place — it is the broadest term and often appears in plural. A fortress is a large, permanent military stronghold designed to withstand long attacks, like a stone castle with thick walls. A stronghold is any place that is strongly defended, whether a fortress or a naturally protected area such as a mountain cave used by rebels. A bastion is specifically a part of a fortification that projects outward so defenders can fire at attackers from multiple angles; figuratively it means something that upholds a principle (a bastion of democracy). A bulwark is a defensive wall made of earth or stone, often used in figurative language for anything that protects against harm (a bulwark against disease). In everyday English, fortress is the most common of these words, while bastion and bulwark tend to sound more literary or formal.

fortress ↗stronghold ↗bastion ↗bulwark ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • system of fortifications
  • line of fortifications
  • fortification works

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Fortification comes from the Latin 'fortificatio', formed from 'fortis' (strong) and '-ficatio' (a making or doing). It passed into English through Old French 'fortification' in the 1400s. The word originally referred to the act of making something strong, and only later came to mean the physical structures themselves.