stronghold

noun

strong·​hold ˈstrȯŋ-ˌhōld How to pronounce stronghold (audio)
1
: a fortified place
2
a
: a place of security or survival
one of the last strongholds of the ancient Gaelic languageGeorge Holmes
b
: a place dominated by a particular group or marked by a particular characteristic
a Republican stronghold
strongholds of snobberyLionel Trilling

Examples of stronghold in a Sentence

The area is a Republican stronghold. The rebels retreated to their mountain stronghold. the last stronghold of the endangered deer
Recent Examples on the Web
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The settlement dates back to a class-action lawsuit stemming the June 2009 arrest of a teenager named Christian Rodriguez for violating a curfew near his home in the Mar Vista Gardens housing project, a stronghold of the Culver City Boys gang. Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 13 Dec. 2024 Hezbollah’s role as chief deterrent to Israel for Iran, however, now seems to feature little in Israeli calculations, after continued pummeling of Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon. Scott Peterson, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Dec. 2024 But rebel groups maintained control of a stronghold in northwest Syria, and the jihadi group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, rose to prominence. Josh Meyer, USA TODAY, 9 Dec. 2024 The aircraft initially flew toward Syria's coastal region, a stronghold of Assad's Alawite sect, before making an abrupt U-turn and disappearing from tracking systems. Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 8 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for stronghold 

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of stronghold was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near stronghold

Cite this Entry

“Stronghold.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stronghold. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

stronghold

noun
strong·​hold ˈstrȯŋ-ˌhōld How to pronounce stronghold (audio)

More from Merriam-Webster on stronghold

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