Word of the Day : April 8, 2018

bastion \BAS-chun\ noun

Definition

1 : a projecting part of a fortification

2 : a fortified area or position

3 a : a place of security or survival 

b : a place dominated by a particular group or marked by a particular characteristic

Did You Know?

Bastion is constructed of etymological building blocks that are very similar to those of bastille (a word now used as a general term for a prison, but probably best known as the name of the Parisian fortress-turned-prison stormed by an angry mob at the start of the French Revolution). The history of bastion can be traced through Middle French to the Old Italian verb bastire, which means "to build." Bastille descends from the Old Occitan verb bastir, which also means "to build." Bastir and bastire are themselves of Germanic origin and akin to the Old High German word besten, meaning "to patch."

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Aired April 8, 2018

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