Buttressed

/ˈbʌtrəst/ verb, adjective

Definition

supported or strengthened with a buttress, or having a buttress built against it for support.

Etymology

From buttress (Old French "bouteret," meaning to thrust or push), used as a verb meaning to reinforce. The suffix -ed marks past tense or adjective form describing something that has been reinforced.

Kelly Says

Medieval architects used buttresses to let cathedrals reach impossible heights—by pushing outward on the walls, they paradoxically made them stronger. This concept of bracing weakness is still used in psychology and writing: you buttress arguments with evidence.

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