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🏰 A strong building 🛡️ To take shelter
to fort

to fort

9.6
To hide in a strong place to stay safe
  • verb
  • /fɔrt/
  • Archaic
translation icon : fortificar
  • Forting up is not exactly a cavalryman's dream.

Examples

  • I don't know how to Fort find this one and I haven't got another one to compare readings between the two so don't really know what to do on it.

  • But we'd better fort up.

    The Unforgiven (1960)

  • Better if you fort up here, get your protection, keep a vigil; call the police.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • We need to fort the entrance of the building to ensure safety during the storm.

  • The villagers decided to fort their homes after hearing about the approaching danger.

  • To protect the soldiers, they forted the camp with barriers and watchtowers.

Synonyms

to wall
vsto fort
41 6.4

To surround an area with a wall to protect it

is broader, covering gathering people inside or other protective measures beyond barriers
to fortify
vsto fort
39 6.2

Make a place or group stronger by building defenses

gathers people together inside for safety rather than only building defenses
to embattle
vsto fort
  • Specialized
1 9.2

To prepare a place or group to fight and defend against attack

focuses on gathering people inside for defense rather than only arranging for battle
to crenellate
vsto fort
  • Specialized
1 9.9

To add gaps and raised parts to a wall so soldiers can defend it from above

is about broader protection or gathering for safety rather than adding narrow features
to defensed
vsto fort
  • US
9.9

To protect a town by building walls, towers, or a ditch around it

focuses on gathering people inside for safety rather than only adding defenses
to casemate
vsto fort
  • Specialized
9.9

To put weapons into a strong shelter to protect them from enemy fire

applies more broadly to gathering people inside for safety, not only shelters
to fort up
vsto fort
  • Archaic
8.2

Gather inside a building to stay safe from danger

includes building defensive works and may also involve gathering people inside
to stockade
vsto fort
8.2

To surround a place with strong wooden posts to protect it

is similar but implies using only posts or stakes rather than broader defenses
to trench
vsto fort
7.7

To dig trenches around a place to make it stronger against attack

focuses on earthworks like dug barriers rather than gathering people inside for protection
to bulwark
vsto fort
8.2

To protect someone or something by giving strong support like a wall

is more physical and often involves gathering people inside or building defenses

Antonyms

to abandon
773 3.1

Leave someone or something behind permanently and without care

to expose
146 2.8

Make something visible by removing a cover or letting light reach it

Idioms

as secure as Fort Knox
  • Informal
7.3

Very safe and hard for anyone to break into or steal from

to man the fort
  • Informal
6.9

To look after a place or job while others are away

Phrasal Verbs

to hold down the fort
  • Informal
19 4.5

Take care of a place or job while someone is away

to fort up
  • Archaic
8.2

Gather inside a building to stay safe from danger

Compounds

Fort Knox
2 7.0

A place or thing like a locked safe that is very secure and hard to get into

Fort Meade
1 5.2

An Army base in Maryland where the National Security Agency has its main offices

star fort
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A strong defensive place with pointed walls that stick out like a star

bastion fort
9.9

A fort with triangular walls that stick out so defenders can cover all sides

Capture of Fort Ticonderoga
9.5

An event in 1775 when American forces took Fort Ticonderoga from the British

Fort George Gordon Meade
7.0

An army base in Maryland where the National Security Agency has its main office

Fort George G. Meade
7.8

An Army base in Maryland that is the main office of the National Security Agency

Fort George G. Meade
  • Literature
8.3

The National Security Agency of the United States or its work

How Fortified

to fort
  • Archaic
9.6
to entrench
  • Specialized
6 7.2
to protect
∞ 1.0
to shelter
76 2.5

Surface Forms

fort infinitive
forted past
forted past participle
forting present participle
forts third person singular

Etymology

Fort as a verb comes from the same root fortis ('strong') and is related to the common word fortify, which means 'make strong'. So to fort is to gather in or protect a place to keep it safe.