Moat

Defensive ditch surrounding a castle, fortress, or town.

water ditch dry ditch

A moat is a deep, wide ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, fortress, or town, historically serving as a defensive structure.

/moʊt/

From Old French mot 'excavation', from Frankish *maht* 'ditch, boundary'.

A moat is like a big, watery ditch around castles and old towns that made it harder for enemies to get in.

Moats were often filled with water from nearby rivers or streams
Some moats had drawbridges to allow access
Medieval castles sometimes used additional defenses like spikes or obstacles in the moat

What is a moat? A ditch filled with water surrounding a castle or town
Why were moats built? To prevent enemies from easily attacking the structure
How deep are moats? They vary in depth, sometimes being quite shallow and other times several meters deep

ditch trench

fortification ditch trench

dry moat wet moat

water walls

castle fortress town

defensive geographical feature historical