counterfort: Meaning and Definition of

coun•ter•fort

Pronunciation: (koun'tur-fôrt", -fōrt"), [key]
— n.
  1. a buttress, esp. one for strengthening a basement wall against the pressure of earth.
  2. a cantilevered weight, as in a retaining wall, having the form of a pier built on the side of the material to be retained.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.