From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary EnglishRelated topics: Buildings, Architecturebastionbas‧ti‧on /ˈbæstiən $ -tʃən/ noun [countable]1PROTECTsomething that protects a way of life, principle etc that seems likely to change or end completelybastion ofThese clubs are the last bastions of male privilege.2PMa place where a country or army has strong militarydefencesPearl Harbor was the principal American bastion in the Pacific.3TBBAA technical a part of a castle wall that sticks out from the restExamples from the Corpusbastion• A bastion of maleprivilege on the rocky Dublin shoreline, so called because of the water depth.• They manned the towers and bastions and the great gates were shut fast.• Silly though it may have seemed at first, these all-male secret societies are bastions of extraordinary power and influence.• The bureaucrats in their Brussels bastion wrongly presumed that bigger is better.• Its empire had collapsed, its protectivering of islandbastionssmashed, its people on the verge of starvation.• Male bastions like the pub, the footballstadium and the military have been stormed.• No Socialistbastion remained intact, no government minister or party leader unthreatened.• In colonial times, Westernmissionaries would dash off to bastions of other faiths to preach the Gospel.bastion of• The region is a bastion ofright-wingRepublicanism.Originbastion(1500-1600)Frenchbastille"strong building, castle", from Old Provençalbastida, from bastir"to build"