stockade
/stɔ'keid/
Definition
Noun:
- A defensive barrier: A stockade is a fortification consisting of a line of strong, upright posts or stakes set firmly in the ground to form a defensive wall or enclosure.
- A place of confinement: A stockade can also refer to a prison or penal camp, often a temporary one, where prisoners (such as prisoners of war or political prisoners) are held, typically under harsh conditions.
Verb:
- To fortify with a stockade: To stockade means to surround or enclose an area with a defensive fence or wall made of stout posts.
Usage Examples
Noun (Defensive barrier):
- The settlers built a wooden stockade around their small village for protection.
- The fort's perimeter was secured by a tall stockade.
Noun (Place of confinement):
- The captured soldiers were held in a makeshift stockade.
- Conditions in the old military stockade were notoriously severe.
Verb:
- They decided to stockade the camp before nightfall.
- The army stockaded the area to prevent escapes.
Advanced Usage
- "To be put/held in the stockade": This phrase specifically refers to being imprisoned in a military prison or guardhouse.
- The disobedient soldier was thrown in the stockade for insubordination.
Variants and Related Words
- Stockaded (adj): Describing an area that has been enclosed by a stockade.
- The stockaded compound was impenetrable from the outside.
Synonyms
- Noun (Barrier): Palisade, fence, enclosure, barrier, bulwark.
- Noun (Prison): Prison camp, internment camp, compound, lockup, brig (naval/military context).
- Verb: Fortify, enclose, fence in, palisade.
Related Phrases
- Stockade fence: A type of fence constructed in the manner of a stockade, with vertical posts placed side-by-side.
- They installed a stockade fence for backyard privacy.
Noun
-
a penal camp where political prisoners or prisoners of war are confined (usually under harsh conditions)
-
fortification consisting of a fence made of a line of stout posts set firmly for defense
Verb
-
surround with a stockade in order to fortify
