bastille C2+ Topic:Crime & Justice US /bæˈstil/ UK /bæˈstiːl/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun a fortress or prison The dissidents languished for years in the king's grim bastille. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a fortress or prison fortressprisonstrongholdcitadelkeepdungeon Word family Related forms bastionbastide Etymology AI details From Old French bastille ('fortress, tower'), from bastir ('to build'), of Germanic origin; generalized from the Paris fortress-prison stormed in 1789. bastille Old French bastir Old French View etymology graph -> Topics Crime & Justice External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # bastille **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /bæˈstil/ **IPA (UK):** /bæˈstiːl/ ## Meanings 1. a fortress or prison ## Examples - The dissidents languished for years in the king's grim bastille. ## Synonyms - fortress - prison - stronghold - citadel - keep - dungeon ## Related Forms - bastion - bastide ## Roots and Affixes - Root: bastille - Root: bastir ## Etymology From Old French bastille ('fortress, tower'), from bastir ('to build'), of Germanic origin; generalized from the Paris fortress-prison stormed in 1789. ## AI Etymology Bastille is a noun meaning "a fortress or prison". Historically, it is from Old French bastille ('fortress, tower'), from bastir ('to build'), of Germanic origin; generalized from the Paris fortress-prison stormed in 1789. The historical chain links Old French bastille with Old French bastir. Close English family members include bastion, and bastide. This keeps the modern noun sense tied to the older forms and language sequence behind it. ## Topics - Crime & Justice markdown