buttress
buttress Lexical Profile
buttress Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To increase the strength of or provide supporting evidence for (an argument, theory, or institution).
"The economist gathered decades of employment data to buttress her argument for policy reform."
To provide (a building or structure) with projecting supports of stone, brick, or timber.
"Engineers had to buttress the retaining wall with heavy concrete piers to prevent a landslide."
• noun
A projecting structure of stone or brick built against a wall to support or reinforce it against lateral thrust.
"The ancient cathedral's massive stone walls were held upright by a series of exterior buttresses."
A source of defense, stability, or support for a person, institution, or idea.
"An independent judiciary serves as an essential buttress of constitutional democracy."
A prominent, steep-sided mass of rock or a ridge that projects outward from the main face of a mountain or hill.
"The mountaineers set up their base camp at the foot of the granite buttress before ascending the peak."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in Middle English from Old French 'bouterez', the plural of 'bouteret' (a thrusting support), which derives from the verb 'bouter' (to thrust, strike, or push against), ultimately of Frankish origin.