Definitions

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

  • intransitive verb To make strong, as.
  • intransitive verb To strengthen and secure (a position) with fortifications.
  • intransitive verb To reinforce by adding material.
  • intransitive verb To impart physical strength or endurance to; invigorate.
  • intransitive verb To give emotional, moral, or mental strength to; encourage.
  • intransitive verb To strengthen or enrich (food, for example), as by adding vitamins.
  • intransitive verb To build fortifications.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To make strong; strengthen; increase the force of in any way; especially, to furnish with means of resistance.
  • Specifically, to surround with defensive works, with a view to resist the assaults of an enemy; strengthen and secure by walls, batteries, or other means of defense: render defensible against attack: as, to fortify a city, town, or harbor.
  • To raise strongholds or defensive works.

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

  • intransitive verb To raise defensive works.
  • transitive verb To add strength to; to strengthen; to confirm; to furnish with power to resist attack.
  • transitive verb To strengthen and secure by forts or batteries, or by surrounding with a wall or ditch or other military works; to render defensible against an attack by hostile forces.

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

  • verb To increase the defenses of.
  • verb To impart strength or vigor to.
  • verb To increase the effectiveness of, as by additional ingredients.
  • verb To strengthen mentally or morally.

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

  • verb make strong or stronger
  • verb enclose by or as if by a fortification
  • verb add alcohol to (beverages)
  • verb add nutrients to
  • verb prepare oneself for a military confrontation

Etymologies

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

[Middle English fortifien, from Old French fortifier, from Late Latin fortificāre : Latin fortis, strong; see bhergh- in Indo-European roots + Latin -ficāre, -fy.]

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Examples

  • Mr. Watson, after many efforts to speak, said in a faultering voice, -- Consider we are christians: -- let that bless'd name fortify our souls.

    Barford Abbey Susannah Minific Gunning

  • Try running fortify on a 2million loc app, you = will get frustrated, you will call fortify, their phone support will be in = effective, they will send someone out to help you, it will take 3 days requ = ire a million hacks to get around the jvm memory limits and will eventually =, hopefully, work.

    The Web Security Mailing List (WASC) 2008

  • Try running fortify on a 2million loc app, you will get frustrated, you will call fortify, their phone support will be ineffective, they will send someone out to help you, it will take 3 days require a million hacks to get around the jvm memory limits and will eventually, hopefully, work.

    The Web Security Mailing List (WASC) 2008

  • Faced with weak sales back in 2006, Burger King invested $3m to "fortify" its UK operation and a marketing push has since paid off.

    The Guardian World News 2010

  • Faced with weak sales back in 2006, Burger King invested $3m to "fortify" its UK operation and a marketing push has since paid off.

    The Guardian World News 2010

  • And it is quite easy to "fortify" your property if you live in an area with a yard.

    Alex Jones' Prison Planet.com 2009

  • He encouraged owners to take measures to "fortify" their businesses with security measures, such as alarms.

    KOMO - News - Top Stories 2008

  • There is widespread chatter that Mr. Chávez may replace key ministers in his cabinet in an attempt to fortify his government amid rumors of his flagging health and also to possibly groom a successor.

    Challenger for Venezuela Presidency Still Hopes to Face Chávez Ezequiel Minaya 2011

  • The Persians had established seven garrison towns on the river to fortify their northern border against Scythian raids.

    Alexander the Great Philip Freeman 2011

  • Fortification, or military architecture, is no other thing than an art, which teaches men to fortify themselves . . . to the end the enemy may not be able to attack . . . without great loss of his men; and that the small number of soldiers which defend the place may be able to hold out for some time.

    George Washington’s First War David A. Clary 2011

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