fortification
noun
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In the Middle Ages, many European cities were entirely enclosed by sturdy walls, with walkways along the top and towers at intervals, designed to make an invasion impossible. A water-filled ditch, or moat, might run alongside the wall for added defense. Such defenses turned the entire city into a fort, or fortress. Over the centuries, fortifications changed steadily with the development of new weaponry. In World War II, the German fortification of the French coast included antitank barriers, bunkers, minefields, and underwater obstacles, but it wasn't enough to turn back the immense force of the Allied invasion on D-day.
Synonyms
Examples of fortification in a Sentence
Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 15 Apr. 2024
Three defense lines are being built, even where there are no hostilities, Zelenskyy said last weekend while visiting new fortifications in the northern Chernihiv region, bordering Belarus.
—Daryna Mayer, NBC News, 12 Apr. 2024
However, even with such fortifications in place, heavy strikes can still cause devastating damage.
—Chris Baraniuk, WIRED, 26 Mar. 2024
Michael Kofman, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said the lack of adequate manpower, particularly infantry troops, and the need for stronger fortifications would be crucial in determining Ukraine’s trajectory.
—Dan Lamothe, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
Prisoners were forced to build fortifications that are still present, part of the Atlantic Wall that was supposed to protect against an Allied invasion of the island.
—Claire Moses, New York Times, 1 Mar. 2024
The fortification would have taken four years to complete, using 5.8 million cubic feet of stone and brick and around 250 laborers, says Charloux.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Jan. 2024
Even basic construction materials—concrete, for example—are useful in creating fortifications; the German concrete industry has been hit hard by higher energy prices.
—Emma Ashford, Foreign Affairs, 10 Jan. 2024
After the war ended, many of these fortifications were demolished or buried, officials said.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fortification.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Fortification.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fortification. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
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fortification
noun
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