fortitude
Americannoun
noun
Usage
What is fortitude? Fortitude is mental or emotional strength in facing something difficult, as in Lillie stayed sane on the deserted island thanks to her intense mental fortitude.Fortitude refers to mental or emotional strength rather than physical or bodily strength, as in During the pandemic, Kasha wrote poetry to maintain her mental fortitude. But you can use words like strength, power, and intensity as synonyms for fortitude if you are talking specifically about mental or emotional strength.The adjective form of fortitude is fortitudinous, as in The fortitudinous soldiers never even considered retreating.Example: You could never tell June was suffering from illness due to her amazing fortitude.
Related Words
See patience.
Other Word Forms
- fortitudinous adjective
Etymology
Origin of fortitude
First recorded 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin fortitūdō “strength, firmness, courage,” equivalent to forti(s) “strong” + -tūdō noun suffix ( -tude )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As an immigrant directly from Korea, Chang showed him the fortitude of structure amid her community.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 23, 2026
She needed that mental fortitude in the build-up to the Games as a series of injuries - including a hip issue in October - hampered her preparations.
From BBC • Feb. 18, 2026
Few, if any, poems exist hailing the fortitude of Roman women like Lucretia and her equivalent in “House of Ashur,” Claudia Black’s Cossutia.
From Salon • Dec. 20, 2025
Perhaps this is a week to be grateful for the fortitude of patient, determined actors willing to stick with it for years and grind out change.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 27, 2025
In denying their bodies the most basic necessities, jockeys demonstrated incredible fortitude.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
