castle
noun
a fortified, usually walled residence, as of a prince or noble in feudal times.
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Castl.
castle
1 American
[kas-uhl, kah-suhl]
/ ˈkæs əl, ˈkɑ səl /
noun
-
castles
plural
-
a fortified, usually walled residence, as of a prince or noble in feudal times.
-
the chief and strongest part of the fortifications of a medieval city.
-
a strongly fortified, permanently garrisoned stronghold.
-
a large and stately residence, especially one, with high walls and towers, that imitates the form of a medieval castle.
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any place providing security and privacy.
It may be small, but my home is my castle.
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Chess. the rook.
verb (used with object)
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castles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
castled,
past participle, past
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castling
present participle
-
to place or enclose in or as in a castle.
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Chess. to move (the king) in castling.
verb (used without object)
Chess.
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castles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
castled,
past participle, past
-
castling
present participle
-
to move the king two squares horizontally and bring the appropriate rook to the square the king has passed over.
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(of the king) to be moved in this manner.
Castle
2
American
[kas-uhl, kah-suhl]
/ ˈkæs əl, ˈkɑ səl /
noun
castle
British
/ ˈkɑːsəl /
noun
-
a fortified building or set of buildings, usually permanently garrisoned, as in medieval Europe
-
any fortified place or structure
-
a large magnificent house, esp when the present or former home of a nobleman or prince
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the citadel and strongest part of the fortifications of a medieval town
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chess another name for rook 2
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
castlesimple
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castlessimple
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have castledperfect
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has castledperfect
-
am castlingprogressive
-
are castlingprogressive
-
is castlingprogressive
-
have been castlingperfect progressive
-
has been castlingperfect progressive
Past
-
castledsimple
-
had castledperfect
-
was castlingprogressive
-
were castlingprogressive
-
had been castlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of castle
before 1000; Middle English, Old English castel < Latin castellum castellum
Explanation
A castle is a huge, grand home where a king or queen might live. Almost all castles are also fortified against attacks by enemy armies. Most castles were built in the Middle Ages by royalty or other nobility. You can still visit many historic castles in Europe, most of them built of stone and including details like towers and guardhouses. You can also call the chess piece known as a "rook" a castle, for its castle-like shape. The word has an Old English root, castel, or "village."
Vocabulary lists containing castle
List 3
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A lush cactus garden is bordered by Elysian Park, completing Fisher’s vision of the castle in the woods, but done in Southern California’s vernacular.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
The Jaecoo 7, pitched to suburbia as an adventure-ready SUV, was launched in January 2025 in the ballroom of a fancy hotel off Windsor Great Park, near King Charles III’s historic castle west of London.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
As host of ‘The Traitors,’ Cumming loves to dress up and play lord of the castle, but in Russell T Davies’ limited series, his latest dramatic role, he aims to shake people up.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
Celebrity Traitors: Can I visit the castle, ride the train and see the unusual monument?
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
And living in a castle, and having thousands of soldiers at his command, and .
From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
In 2023, Loukas Tsarmaklis, a director of Ardross Castle Enterprises, told The Press and Journal, external they "try to keep a low profile... but there is no chance now".
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
The Orange Order and Garvaghy Road residents continued separate talks Wednesday with Britain's Northern Ireland minister Chris Bryant at Hillsborough Castle, west of Belfast, after earlier rounds failed to produce a breakthrough.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
Chapek lays it all out in his memoir, “Behind the Castle Walls,” which Gallery Books will publish next week.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
Nearby resident Sophie Castle said she was "slightly worried" about what might unfold next, adding her flat was "incredibly close to the situation".
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
“No, we got wind of a nasty backfiring jinx down in Elephant and Castle, but luckily the Magical Law Enforcement Squad had sorted it out by the time we got there...”
From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling
The list also includes five castles in south Lebanon's Jabal Amel area, among them the Crusader-era Beaufort fortress, which Israeli forces captured in May.
From Barron's ● Aug. 29, 2026
The church’s fanciful, conical towers have drawn comparison to Disney castles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
The Normans built hundreds of castles which secured their control and projected royal power.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
When he was in his 20s, the Welsh actor Matthew Rhys spent a night at one of the most haunted castles in his home country.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 11, 2026
Every shelf in his office boasted pictures of his kids: building sand castles at the beach, swinging baseball bats, waving from sailboats.
From "Red Kayak" by Priscilla Cummings
In the fifth game, Nepo as White hits on the unusual strategy of launching a pawn storm right in front of his castled king.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 18, 2023
Debutant Emma Lamb was bowled for a second-ball duck and captain Heather Knight was castled by a Tahlia McGrath yorker, leaving England 19-2.
From BBC ● Feb. 8, 2022
As “Cleanness” moves forward, as if in a game of chess, positions are castled.
From New York Times ● Jan. 13, 2020
Slowly things seemed to be turning Carlsen’s way; the kings were castled on opposite sides of the board, which often means each player will be racing to attack the other’s king.
From Slate ● Nov. 28, 2018
As it turned out, the old man never castled.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
Kf1 Qf6, the loss of castling is not a huge blow to White’s position, but Khamrakulov fails to appreciate the dangers lurking in the position.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 29, 2023
She saved the best for last, castling Kate Cross with another beauty: full and turning just enough to beat the edge as the batter aimed a shot through the leg side.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2022
He played aggressively in the opening, eschewing a chance to trade queens early on and also not castling his king, which is the usual method to keep it safe.
From New York Times ● Dec. 6, 2021
Broad hoops an inswinging yorker at Smith, nearly castling him.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 17, 2019
I am the beggar Christ— Christ that calmed the castling flood!
From The Mountainy Singer by Seosamh MacCathmhaoil
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
