To fortify something is to make it stronger, especially to protect it from attack or harm. This can be physical, like fortifying a wall, or metaphorical, like fortifying your courage.
From Latin “fortificare” meaning “to strengthen,” built from “fortis” (strong) and “facere” (to make). It came into English through French military language.
You see ‘fort’ hiding inside ‘fortify’—a fort is a strong place, and to fortify is to “fort-ify” anything. Even cereal companies use the word when they add vitamins, as if they’re building tiny nutritional walls inside your breakfast.
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