Illustration of castle
- 1 fortified approach
- 2 moat
- 3 drawbridge
- 4 ward
- 5 angle tower
- 6 donjon or keep
- 7 chapel
- 8 gallery
1
a
: a large fortified building or set of buildings
b
: a massive or imposing house
2
: a retreat safe against intrusion or invasion
3
castled; castling
ˈka-s(ə-)liŋ 
: to move a chess king two squares toward a rook and in the same move the rook to the square next past the king
Examples of castle in a Sentence
Noun
Millionaires built their castles along the lake.
the implacable attackers placed the castle under a prolonged siege
Recent Examples on the Web
Rob Schmitz, NPR, 16 May 2026
Kreischer and his crew take over the beach, stomping on the Carolina Panthers’ sand castle, cutting the line of the Falcons’ kite and splashing the Detroit Lions, Vikings and Packers with the wake of a jet ski.
—Jayna Bardahl, New York Times, 15 May 2026
Tim Ellis, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
For example, pawns could not move two squares on their first turn, and there was no similar rule for castling.
—Dylan Loeb McClain, New York Times, 27 May 2023
See All Example Sentences for castle
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Noun
This tiny Bavarian town has a 1,000-year-old castle, a 700-year-old watchtower, and a mayor in office for just a few days who's facing one of the town's biggest crises in its history.
—Rob Schmitz, NPR, 16 May 2026
Kreischer and his crew take over the beach, stomping on the Carolina Panthers’ sand castle, cutting the line of the Falcons’ kite and splashing the Detroit Lions, Vikings and Packers with the wake of a jet ski.
—Jayna Bardahl, New York Times, 15 May 2026
Verb
The proactive Axar Patel hit an aggressive 27 before being castled by Nathan Ellis.
—Tim Ellis, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
For example, pawns could not move two squares on their first turn, and there was no similar rule for castling.
—Dylan Loeb McClain, New York Times, 27 May 2023
See All Example Sentences for castle
Cite this Entry
“Castle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/castle. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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