rampart

views updated May 23 2018

ram·part / ˈramˌpärt/ • n. (usu. ramparts) a defensive wall of a castle or walled city, having a broad top with a walkway and typically a stone parapet. ∎  a defensive or protective barrier.• v. [tr.] (usu. be ramparted) rare fortify or surround with or as if with a rampart.

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English

rampart

views updated Jun 27 2018

rampart.
1. Thick wall in fortifications for defence, with a walkway or platform on top for the defenders, and a battlemented parapet.

2. Defensive mound of earth, with an inclined slope on the outside, its top flat and wide enough for guns and troop-movements, protected by a parapet.

A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture JAMES STEVENS CURL

rampart

views updated May 17 2018

rampart XVI. — F. rempart, †rampart, alt. of †remper, †ramper, f. remparer fortify, f. RE- + emparer take possession of.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology T. F. HOAD

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