Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A fortification consisting of an embankment, often with a parapet built on top.
  • noun A means of protection or defense; a bulwark. synonym: bulwark.
  • transitive verb To fortify or surround with a rampart.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In fortification, an elevation or mound of earth round a place, capable of resisting cannon-shot, and having the parapet raised upon it; a protecting enceinte; also, this elevation together with the parapet.
  • noun Hence Something that serves as a bulwark or defense; an obstruction against approach or intrusion; a protecting inclosure.
  • noun Synonyms See fortification.
  • To fortify with ramparts; protect by or as if by a rampart; bolster; strengthen.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To surround or protect with, or as with, a rampart or ramparts.
  • transitive verb (Fort.) a cannon or large gun for use on a rampart and not as a fieldpiece.
  • noun That which fortifies and defends from assault; that which secures safety; a defense or bulwark.
  • noun (Fort.) A broad embankment of earth round a place, upon which the parapet is raised. It forms the substratum of every permanent fortification.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A defensive mound of earth or a wall with a broad top and usually a stone parapet; a wall-like ridge of earth, stones or debris; an embankment for defensive purpose.
  • noun A defensive structure; a protective barrier; a bulwark.
  • noun That which defends against intrusion from outside; a protection.
  • noun usually plural A steep bank of a river or gorge.
  • verb To defend with a rampart; fortify or surround with a rampart.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun an embankment built around a space for defensive purposes

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[French rempart, from Old French, from remparer, to fortify : re-, re- + emparer, to fortify, take possession of (from Old Provençal amparar, from Vulgar Latin *ante parāre, to prepare : Latin ante-, ante- + Latin parāre, to prepare; see perə- in Indo-European roots).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old French rempart ("a rampart of a fort"), from remparer ("to defend, fortify, inclose with a rampart"), from re- ("again") + emparer ("to defend, fortify, surround, seize, take possesion of"), from en- + parer ("to defend").

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Examples

  • [Page 158] elegant chalet, similar in construction to a Chinese pagoda: in front of it, a little piece of ground inclosed by a rampart is reserved for the pair.

    The Montessori Method Anne E. Montessori George 1912

  • The Emperor Hadrian built (A.D. 120) the rampart from the Solway to the German Ocean as a barrier against the Caledonians, giving up the more northern conquests; but Lollius Urbicus, the prætor, drove the enemy back, and built a lesser wall from the Forth to the Clyde, A.D.

    A Parallel History of France and England; Consisting of Outlines and Dates 1871

  • The height of the rampart is 20 ft., and the width 32 ft.

    Illustrations of the War in America 1863

  • Against the rampart was the spectral shape of a man, propped up on his back, limbs spread out.

    Crusader Gold Gibbons, David 2007

  • Against the rampart was the spectral shape of a man, propped up on his back, limbs spread out.

    Crusader Gold Gibbons, David 2007

  • The rampart is the common road for carriages of all kinds.

    Travels through France and Italy 2004

  • At the end of the rampart was a small colonnade, and at the end of that, winding stairs that led down to the Prophet's quarters.

    Stone of Tears Goodkind, Terry 1995

  • The first, however, to approach the rampart were the consul and the troops he was bringing from the sea.

    The History of Rome, Vol. VI 1905

  • In front of the rampart was a wet ditch (A), 100 ft. wide, fed with fresh water from a neighbouring brook by an inlet at the south-western corner (C) and emptied by an outfall on the east

    Ancient Town-Planning 1889

  • Beneath the rampart is a tidal river, and on the other side, for a long distance, the mossy walls of the immense garden of a seminary.

    A Little Tour of France Henry James 1879

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