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fortification

[fawr-tuh-fi-key-shuhn]
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noun

the act of fortifying or strengthening.
something that fortifies or protects.
the art or science of constructing defensive military works.
Often fortifications. military works constructed for the purpose of strengthening a position; a fort: Supposedly impregnable, the fortifications were quickly overrun.
a strengthening or improvement, as by addition of or intensification with another ingredient: the fortification of milk with vitamin D; the fortification of wine with alcohol.

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RELATED WORDS

barricade, reinforcement, fortress, citadel, wall, defense, fastness, support, bastion, battlement, barrier, buffer, consolidation, protection, outpost, fort, stronghold, parapet, bulwark, keep

Nearby words

  1. forthcoming,
  2. forthright,
  3. forthwith,
  4. forties,
  5. fortieth,
  6. fortification agate,
  7. fortified pa,
  8. fortified wine,
  9. fortify,
  10. fortin barometer

Origin of fortification

1400–50; late Middle English < Late Latin fortificātiōn- (stem of fortificātiō), equivalent to fortificāt(us) fortified (see fortify, -ate1) + -iōn- -ion
Related formsnon·for·ti·fi·ca·tion, nounre·for·ti·fi·ca·tion, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for fortification

British Dictionary definitions for fortification

fortification

noun

the act, art, or science of fortifying or strengthening
  1. a wall, mound, etc, used to fortify a place
  2. such works collectively
any place that can be militarily defended
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for fortification

fortification

n.

early 15c., "strengthening," also "defensive earthworks, tower" (mid-15c.), from Middle French fortification "strengthening, fortification," from Late Latin fortificationem (nominative fortificatio), noun of action from past participle stem of fortificare (see fortify).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper