circumvallation

English

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Etymology

From circumvallate.

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /sɜːkəmvæˈleɪʃən/

Noun

circumvallation (plural circumvallations)

  1. A rampart or other defensive entrenchment.
    • 1761, Laurence Sterne, The Life & Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, vol. 3, Penguin 2003, p. 201:
      [...] and in a word, would intrench and fortify them round with as many circumvallations and breast-works, as my uncle Toby would a citadel.
    • 1819, Walter Scott, Ivanhoe:
      The Saxon architect had exhausted his art in rendering the main keep defensible, and there was no other circumvallation than a rude barrier of palisades.

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Last modified on 30 August 2012, at 18:58