a moat or defensive ditch in a fortification, usually filled with water.
any ditch, trench, or canal.
1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French < Latin fossa fossa 1
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
There was a road paved with white stone running on the outer brink of the fosse.
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Beyond it was a deep fosse lost in soft shadow, but the grass upon its brink was green, as if it glowed still in memory of the sun that had gone.
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
This fort was defended by a fosse of immense depth, and by massy walls of an extraordinary thickness, flanked at each corner by a bastion well supplied with cannon.
From The Monarchs of the Main, Volume II (of 3) Or, Adventures of the Buccaneers by Thornbury, Walter
A surly arquebusier with a steel cap on his head, his gun upon his shoulder, and the rest thereof in his hand, was the first person that he encountered at the bridge over the fosse.
From Henry of Guise; (Vol. II of 3) or, The States of Blois by James, G. P. R. (George Payne Rainsford)
Swift in expedient, the stewards supplied the difficulty with quicklime, which was scattered with a lavish hand in the fosse, and shone like snow through the barrier of furze bushes on the take-off side.
From Further Experiences of an Irish R.M. by Ross, Martin
Lucy Kemp, a strategic brand and communications leader at the IT company La Fosse and an employee experience specialist, agrees.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Left to talk, Jacobs whirls through stories of past, present and future: anecdotes about his grandmother planning her lunch spot around which department store she’d spend the day at, and memories of Bob Fosse films.
From Salon ● Mar. 27, 2026
When forced by Pozzo to dance, Mr. Thornton merely doffs his bowler hat rhythmically a few times in a funny nod to Bob Fosse.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2025
She capped off her win with an ultra-physical performance that referenced Michael Jackson, Missy Elliott and Bob Fosse - and ended with her pulling the splits while being held aloft by five male dancers.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2025
As directed by Bob Fosse on Broadway, the dancing was raucous, and the themes—Pippin’s relationships with multiple women, his struggles with authority and the church—were overtly presented.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
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.
