Definition

1. Noun:
   • A jail or prison, especially one run in a tyrannical manner: "Bastille" can refer to any prison, particularly one perceived as oppressive or unjust.
   • A specific historical fortress in Paris: "Bastille" specifically refers to the Bastille fortress in Paris, built in the 14th century and famously used as a state prison before its storming on July 14, 1789, which marked a key event in the French Revolution.

Usage Examples

• Noun (General Prison):

  • The dictator's political opponents were thrown into a grim bastille.
  • The old castle was used as a bastille for captured rebels.

• Noun (Historical Fortress):

  • The storming of the Bastille is celebrated as France's national day.
  • The Bastille was a symbol of royal tyranny before the Revolution.

Advanced Usage

• "a bastille of [something]": Used metaphorically to describe a place or institution that is seen as an oppressive stronghold.
  • The old factory was a bastille of outdated ideas and practices.
  • To the rebels, the government palace was a bastille of corruption.

Variants and Related Words

• Bastille Day: (Proper noun) The French national holiday on July 14th, commemorating the storming of the Bastille in 1789.
  • They celebrated Bastille Day with a parade and fireworks.

Synonyms

• Prison, jail, penitentiary, dungeon (for the general meaning).
• Fortress, stronghold, citadel (for the architectural/military meaning).

Related Idioms and Phrases

• "Storm the Bastille": Taken from the historical event, this phrase is used metaphorically to mean attacking or overthrowing a powerful and oppressive institution or system.
  • The protesters aimed to storm the bastille of corporate greed.
• "A modern bastille": Refers to any contemporary institution perceived as an unjust prison or stronghold of oppression.
  • The activists described the data surveillance center as a modern bastille.

Noun

1. a jail or prison (especially one that is run in a tyrannical manner)
2. a fortress built in Paris in the 14th century and used as a prison in the 17th and 18th centuries; it was destroyed July 14, 1789 at the start of the French Revolution