# castle

Pronunciation: US say "KA-suhl" /ˈkæsəl/; UK/AUS say "KAH-suhl" /ˈkɑːsəl/

## Noun

1. A large fortified building or group of buildings with strong walls and towers, built in earlier times as the home of a ruler or noble; also a grand, imposing mansion built in this style.
   - Simple: A large, strong building with thick walls and towers, where kings or lords lived long ago.
   - _The medieval castle dominated the valley with its high walls and guarded gate._
   - _They restored the crumbling castle and opened it to visitors._
2. In informal usage, the rook in chess: the corner piece shaped like a small fortified tower. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: In chess, another name for the rook, the piece shaped like a small tower.
   - _She slid her castle along the open file to attack the queen._
   - _He lost his last castle in a careless trade._
4. In chess, a single occurrence of castling; a defensive move that repositions the king and a rook simultaneously.
   - Simple: In chess, the act of castling: bringing the king to safety beside a rook in one move.
   - _A well-timed castle can decide the safety of the king for the rest of the game._
   - _Black delayed the castle too long and paid for it._
7. In cricket, an informal name for the wicket: the three stumps and two bails defended by the batter. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: In cricket, the set of three wooden stumps that the bowler tries to hit.
   - _The yorker rattled his castle, and the umpire raised his finger._
   - _He played across the line and lost his castle to a straight ball._

## Verb

3. In chess, to move the king two squares toward a rook and swing that rook past it in one turn, allowed only if neither piece has moved.
   - Simple: In chess, to move your king two squares toward a rook and swing that rook to the king's far side.
   - _White chose to castle on the queenside, tucking the king behind a wall of pawns._
   - _You cannot castle while your king is in check._
6. In cricket, to dismiss a batter by bowling the ball into the stumps, usually with a yorker or full-length delivery.
   - Simple: In cricket, to get a batter out by bowling the ball into the stumps, often with a full, low ball.
   - _He castled the tail-ender first ball with a swinging yorker._
   - _One unplayable delivery can castle a settled batter and turn the match._

## Noun

5. A small tower, such as one raised on a ship's deck or mounted on an elephant's back. *(dated)*
   - Simple: A small tower built on a ship or carried on an elephant's back.
   - _Sailors fired down on the enemy from the castle at the stern._
   - _Each elephant bore a small castle strapped to its back, crowded with archers._
9. A fully enclosing helmet that covered the entire head and face, worn with plate armor. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: An old kind of fully enclosed helmet that covered the whole head.

## Verb

8. To build in the form of a castle, or add real or imitation battlements to an existing building. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To build something like a castle, or add castle-like walls to a building.

## Other meanings

- (verb) To shield or wall off someone or something, keeping it protected or set apart as if behind castle walls.
- (verb) To house or keep someone or something within a castle.
- (noun) In shogi, a defensive formation in which several pieces are arranged around the king to shield it.
- (verb) In shogi, to form a defensive position by moving several pieces into a protective formation around the king.

## Origin

The word comes from Late Latin "castellum" ("small camp, fort"), a diminutive of Latin "castrum" ("camp, fort, citadel, stronghold"). It entered English via late Old English (where it first meant a town or village) and, in the sense of "castle," through Anglo-Norman/Old Northern French "castel"; it is a doublet of "château." The Latin "castrum" may go back to Proto-Indo-European *kat- ("hut, shed").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/castle (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).