bastion
noun /ˈbæstiən/
/ˈbæstʃən/
- (formal) a group of people or a system that protects a way of life or a belief when it seems that it may disappear
- a bastion of male privilege
- a bastion of freedom
- a place that military forces are defending
- Singapore was the last bastion of British defences in South-East Asia.
Word Originmid 16th cent.: from French, from Italian bastione, from bastire ‘build’.