bastille

Also bas·tile

[ba-steel, bas-tee-y^uh]

noun

plural

bastilles 

1. (initial capital letter),  a fortress in Paris, used as a prison, built in the 14th century and destroyed July 14, 1789.

2. any prison or jail, especially one conducted in a tyrannical way.

3. a fortified tower, as of a castle; a small fortress; citadel.

Bastille

/ bastij, bæˈstiːl /

noun

1. a fortress in Paris, built in the 14th century: a prison until its destruction in 1789, at the beginning of the French Revolution

Bastille

1. A prison in Paris where many political and other offenders were held and tortured until the time of the French Revolution. It was attacked by workers on July 14, 1789, during the revolution; the prisoners were released, and the building was later demolished.

The anniversary of the attack, Bastille Day, is the most important national holiday in France.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bastille¹

1350–1400; Middle English bastile < Middle French, probably alteration of bastide bastide, with -ile (< Medieval Latin, Latin -īle noun suffix of place) replacing -ide; replacing Middle English bastel < Old French basstel, with -el similarly replacing -ide

Word History and Origins

Origin of bastille¹

C14: from Old French bastile fortress, from Old Provençal bastida , from bastir to build, of Germanic origin; see _baste ¹

Example Sentences

“If we have a fourth one, Jerusalem will become a new bastille.”

From Washington Post

Reading some of the coverage, you’d think someone was storming the bastille.

From Forbes

“There are more prisoners in my bastille, my jail, and higher costs for arrests.”

From US News

Chains cannot bind that down; bastilles cannot shut it in; and every attempt to crush it is but an effort of tyranny both impotent and cruel.

From Project Gutenberg

"And he is now incarcerated in your bastille."

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• apprehend 
• commit 
• detain 
• hold 
• incarcerate 
• jail 
• lock up 
• remand