rhizoverbBeta
DictionaryblockhouseFortified building
noun

blockhouse

BLAHK-house/ˈblɑːkhaʊs/

A small fortified building used for defense.

The timber blockhouse has thick walls and narrow defensive openings.

A compact two-story timber blockhouse with thick squared-log walls, a projecting upper story, narrow firing loopholes, and a heavily reinforced entrance, clearly recognizable as a small defensive fort.
Etymology
blockOld Frenchlog, block of wood
+houseOld Englishdwelling, shelter

The wooden-block connection seems to fit later log-built defensive buildings. The word's origin is uncertain, however, and its earliest sense was a detached fort blocking a landing or pass.

In context

Vivid Audio Library427:10
out of the blockhouse, a dozen men or so came running
A Patriotic School Girl by Angela Brazil | Full Classic British School Story Audiobook

More examples

  • A timber blockhouse guarded the crossing.
  • Narrow openings pierced the blockhouse walls.
  • The defenders reinforced the blockhouse door.

Forms

blockhouse · blockhouses

Similar words

fort
Fort is broad; a blockhouse is a compact fortified building.
bunker
A bunker is often protected by earth or concrete; a blockhouse may be a freestanding timber structure.