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Glite Dictionary
breastwork

breastwork

1 9.3
A low wall of earth or wood about chest high that soldiers build to protect themselves
  • noun
  • /ˈbrɛstˌwɜrk/
  • Archaic
translation icon : muro de defensa
  • The Confederate skirmishers dashed back toward the breastworks.
  • breastwork of the fort
  • constructed a breastwork
  • building breastworks

Chaffin put them to work building breastworks and trenches on the two peaks overlooking the Blair Mountain Gap.

Examples

  • The 47th North Carolina was not behind a breastwork now.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • A few minutes later, he discovered why: the bluecoats were fighting from behind a breastwork of their own.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • More and more men in gray reached the breastwork.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • One or two others at the breastwork screamed as they were hit.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • His face set and grim, he charged on alone toward the breastwork.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • Caudell looked up and down the breastwork.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • Caudell and everyone else on the breastwork who could still handle a rifle fired again and again and again.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • Fresh troops coming up the Orange Plank Road took their places at the breastwork they'd built.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • Caudell filled his pockets again, crouched behind the breastwork, and waited.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • The soldiers took cover behind the breastwork they had built to protect themselves from enemy fire.

Synonyms

parapet
vsbreastwork
8 7.2

A low wall at the edge of a roof, bridge, or balcony to stop people from falling

is a chest-high temporary field barrier rather than an edge roof wall
fortification
vsbreastwork
  • Specialized
2 8.1

Designing and building military defenses to protect places from attack

is a specific temporary chest-high defensive wall not the broader science of defenses
entrenchment
vsbreastwork
  • Specialized
1 8.6

A military position protected by trenches

is a chest-high wall used for protection rather than a trench-based position
fieldwork
vsbreastwork
  • Archaic
7.0

Temporary structures that soldiers make to protect themselves in battle

is chest-high and specifically made as a quick protective wall

How High

bulwark
11 8.6
rampart
12 8.8
wall
∞ 1.0
breastwork
  • Archaic
1 9.3
parapet
8 7.2

Surface Forms

breastwork singular
breastworks plural

Morphology

breastwork = breast + work (transparent) = breast + work

The term is a straightforward compound meaning a 'work' (fortification) at breast (chest) height, so the components clearly predict the sense.

Etymology

The word breastwork comes from the parts breast ('chest') and work ('something made'), and it creates a clear image of a low wall built up to a person's chest. So a breastwork is a quick, temporary chest-high defensive wall soldiers use for protection.