bergfried

B3E1R1G2F4R1I1E1D2

noun

A tall defensive tower typically found in medieval castles in German-influenced countries.

OriginGerman Bergfried →
Scrabble 16
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Meanings

nounbergfried (plural bergfrieds)

plural bergfrieds

  1. A tall defensive tower typically found in medieval castles in German-influenced countries.

    Founded in 1100, and boasting a bergfried (free-standing defensive tower), turreted ramparts, and Gothic additions, it's the only medieval castle on the Rhine never to have been destroyed.

    2019 [2016], Sarah Baxter, A History of the World in 500 Walks, Aurum, →ISBN, page 162

Origin

  1. GermanBergfried
  2. Englishbergfried

Borrowed from German Bergfried. Doublet of belfry.

More words from German

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Friedberg
Cite this entry
APA

bergfried. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bergfried

MLA

“bergfried.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bergfried. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bergfried,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bergfried.

Source: bergfried on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.