Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A small, often temporary defensive fortification.
  • noun A reinforcing earthwork or breastwork within a permanent rampart.
  • noun A protected place of refuge or defense.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun See redout.
  • To fear; dread.
  • To venerate; honor.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb rare To stand in dread of; to regard with fear; to dread.
  • noun A small, and usually a roughly constructed, fort or outwork of varying shape, commonly erected for a temporary purpose, and without flanking defenses, -- used esp. in fortifying tops of hills and passes, and positions in hostile territory.
  • noun In permanent works, an outwork placed within another outwork. See F and i in Illust. of ravelin.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A small, temporary, military fortification.
  • noun A reinforced refuge; a fort.
  • noun A place of safety or refuge.
  • verb archaic To dread.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun an entrenched stronghold or refuge
  • noun (military) a temporary or supplementary fortification; typically square or polygonal without flanking defenses

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[French redoute, from Italian ridotto, from Medieval Latin reductus, concealed place, from Latin, past participle of redūcere, to withdraw, lead back; see reduce.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From French redoute, from Italian ridotta, from Medieval Latin reductus ("refuge"), from Latin reduco ("I withdraw"). The b was added by influence of the unrelated English word doubt (which ultimately derives from Latin dubito).

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Examples

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  • A fortification, often temporary.

    August 14, 2007