1. fortified places or secure refuges that are well defended
2. places where particular groups, ideas, or activities are concentrated and dominant
Usage: figurative

Examples

• The medieval castle served as one of the kingdom’s most important strongholds.
• Enemy forces attacked the mountain strongholds at dawn.
• The university remains a stronghold of liberal thinking.
• Rural areas are traditional strongholds for the conservative party.
• These neighborhoods have become strongholds of immigrant communities.
• The company’s strongholds in the market are beginning to weaken.
• Rebel forces retreated to their strongholds in the hills.