Meaning of barbican | Babel Free

Definitions

1. A tower at the entrance to a castle or fortified town.
2. A neighbourhood in Plymouth, Devon, England (OS grid ref SX4854).
3. A fortress at the end of a bridge.
4. A neighbourhood and residential estate in the City of London, Greater London, England (OS grid ref TQ3281)
5. An opening in the wall of a fortress through which the guns are levelled; a narrow loophole through which arrows and other missiles may be shot.
6. A temporary wooden tower built for defensive purposes.

Equivalents

Examples

“The stone part of the drawbridge with its barbican and the bartizans of the gatehouse are in good repair. […] There was a large hidden trapdoor in the floor of the barbican, which would let them into the moat after all.”

“Two shafts of soft daylight fell across the flagged floor from the high barbacans.”

CEFR level