Bridgehead

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Bridgehead \Bridge"head`\, n.
     A fortification commanding the extremity of a bridge nearest
     the enemy, to insure the preservation and usefulness of the
     bridge, and prevent the enemy from crossing; a
     t[^e]te-de-pont.
     [1913 Webster]



From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  bridgehead
       n 1: an area in hostile territory that has been captured and is
            held awaiting further troops and supplies; "an attempt
            to secure a bridgehead behind enemy lines"; "the only
            foothold left for British troops in Europe was
            Gibraltar" [syn: {foothold}]
       2: a defensive post at the end of a bridge nearest to the enemy

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  53 Moby Thesaurus words for "bridgehead":
     acropolis, advance guard, airhead, avant-garde, bastion,
     battle line, beachhead, blockhouse, bunker, castle, citadel,
     donjon, farthest outpost, fasthold, fastness, first line,
     forefront, fort, fortress, front, front line, front rank,
     front-runner, garrison, garrison house, hold, keep, line, martello,
     martello tower, mote, motte, outguard, outpost, peel, peel tower,
     pillbox, pioneer, point, post, precursor, railhead, rath, safehold,
     scout, spearhead, strong point, stronghold, tower,
     tower of strength, van, vanguard, ward