What does bastille mean?
A bastille is a fortress, particularly one used as a prison. The word is best known through the Bastille of Paris, a medieval stronghold converted into a French royal state prison whose storming by revolutionary crowds on 14 July 1789 became the defining symbol of the French Revolution. That event is commemorated each year as Bastille Day, France's national holiday, which keeps the term firmly alive in everyday English even though few speakers ever use the word for any other building. Beyond this historical sense, 'bastille' can be applied figuratively to any grim, seemingly impregnable place of confinement, giving sentences such as 'he called the school a bastille'. The noun carries strong connotations of oppression, despotism, and dramatic liberation, so writers often invoke it precisely to suggest that a regime or institution deserves to be overthrown. It remains a proper-noun-flavoured word: capitalized when referring to the Parisian fortress itself, and lowercase when used more generally.
nounA bastille is a fortified stronghold or prison; in English usage it most famously refers to the Bastille of Paris, the medieval fortress used as a state prison until its storming in 1789.
- A fortified stronghold or castle, especially one serving as a prison.
- Any state prison or place of harsh confinement, by extension.
"The revolutionaries stormed the Bastille on 14 July 1789, an act now commemorated as France's national day."
"The mob marched on the Bastille, demanding gunpowder and the release of prisoners."
"He described the boarding school as a veritable bastille from which escape was unthinkable."
Rarely needed, since the word usually refers to the single Parisian fortress or is used uncountably in a figurative sense.
"Across the kingdom, royal bastilles held those who had offended the crown."
The word 'bastille' names one of history's most famous buildings — and its storming by just under a thousand Parisians freed seven prisoners and toppled a monarchy.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of bastille
The word comes from French bastille, meaning a fortified structure or castle, derived from the verb bâtir (earlier bastir), meaning 'to build', which traces back to a Germanic root via Old French. The same root gave rise to the related terms bastion and bastide (a type of fortified town in southern France). English borrowed the word in the sixteenth century, but its fame was secured by the storming of the Parisian Bastille in 1789.
How bastille is actually used
In modern English, 'bastille' is rarely used generically for any fortress; it overwhelmingly appears in references to the Bastille of Paris or in capitalized form as part of 'Bastille Day'. Lowercase generic use has a literary, somewhat archaic flavour.
Easily confused with bastille
A bastion is a projecting part of a fortification's wall (or figuratively a defender of a cause), whereas a bastille is a whole fortress or prison.
A pastille is a small medicated sweet or lozenge, sharing only a similar sound with bastille.