Bastion Meaning
/ˈbæsti.ən/Definition, CEFR level C2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA projecting part of a rampart or other fortification.
nounA well-fortified position; a stronghold or citadel.
Sentence Examples
The bastion was a strong fortress.
The bastion protected the city from invaders.
The old fortress stood as a strong bastion against invaders.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The old castle's stone ____ protected the soldiers from enemy arrows during the siege.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The old fort was the final ____ of defense against the invading army.
Word Origin & History
First attested in 1562. From French bastion, from Old French bastille (“fortress”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"[…] Fort Camosun had swelled herself from being a little Hudson's Bay Fort, inside a stockade with bastions at the corners, into being the little town of Victoria, and the capital of British Columbia."
— 1942, Emily Carr, “Beginnings”, in The Book of Small, Toronto, Ont.: Oxford University Press, →OCLC:
"[…] yonder cloud
That rises upward always higher,
And onward drags a labouring breast,
And topples round the dreary west,
A looming bastion fringed with fire."
— 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto XV”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 24:
"It spread slowly up from the sea-rim, a welling upwards of pure white light, ghosting the beach with silver and drawing the grey bastions of sandstone out of formless space."
— 1938, Norman Lindsay, Age of Consent, 1st Australian edition, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1962, →OCLC, page 32:
Explore More C2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The old castle's stone ____ protected the soldiers from enemy arrows during the siege.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The old fort was the final ____ of defense against the invading army.