fastness.

1. A stronghold or remote place that is difficult to enter or reach.

2. The quality of remaining firm, secure, or resistant to change, especially loss of color.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• a mountain fastness
• a secluded fastness

On the page

The mountain fastness remained outside the patrol’s reach.

She withdrew to a secluded fastness whose path vanished in winter.

Usage notes

Primary category: setting. Forms: Singular fastness; plural fastnesses. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.