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defend

verb
de·​fend | \ di-ˈfend How to pronounce defend (audio) \
defended; defending; defends

Definition of defend

transitive verb

1a : to drive danger or attack away from defend the castle from invaders
b(1) : to maintain or support in the face of argument or hostile criticism defend a theory couldn't defend their actions
(2) : to prove (something, such as a doctoral thesis or dissertation) valid by answering questions in an oral exam preparing to defend her thesis
c sports : to attempt to prevent an opponent from scoring at elects to defend the south goal
2 archaic : prevent, forbid which God defend that I should wring from him— Shakespeare
3 : to act as attorney for hired a lawyer to defend their son
4 law : to deny or oppose the right of a plaintiff in regard to (a suit or a wrong charged) : contest
5 : to retain or seek to retain (something, such as a title or position) against a challenge in a contest they successfully defended their championship

intransitive verb

1 : to take action against attack or challenge the defending champion
2 sports : to play or be on defense playing deep to defend against a pass
3 card games : to play against the high bidder
Other Words from defend Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about defend

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Other Words from defend

defendable \ di-​ˈfen-​də-​bəl How to pronounce defendable (audio) \ adjective

Choose the Right Synonym for defend

defend, protect, shield, guard, safeguard mean to keep secure from danger or against attack. defend denotes warding off actual or threatened attack. defend the country protect implies the use of something (such as a covering) as a bar to the admission or impact of what may attack or injure. a hard hat to protect your head shield suggests protective intervention in imminent danger or actual attack. shielded her eyes from the sun with her hand guard implies protecting with vigilance and force against expected danger. White House entrances are well guarded safeguard implies taking precautionary protective measures against merely possible danger. our civil liberties must be safeguarded

synonyms see in addition maintain

defend, protect, and safeguard mean to keep safe. defend is used for a danger or an attack that is actual or threatening. The soldiers defended the fort against enemy troops. protect is used when some kind of shield can prevent possible attack or injury. Protect your eyes with dark glasses. safeguard is used when a course of action can protect against a possible danger. The health rules help safeguard the students from disease.

Examples of defend in a Sentence

The company must defend its own interests. We believed it was a cause worth defending. She defended her friend's behavior. Stop defending him. What he did was wrong.
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Recent Examples on the Web

 Many of the president’s comments about the storm have been defending his erroneous claim that Alabama was likely to face significant impact from it. — Jonathan Lemire, Fortune, "Trump Uses North Carolina Campaign Rally to Slam ‘American-Hating Left’," 10 Sep. 2019 Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski booted all seven of his potential scoring kicks between the uprights, feeding 15 points into the defending Super Bowl champs’ 33-3 rout of the Steelers. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Column: Rivers rolls on for Chargers while young AFC QBs nurse injuries," 9 Sep. 2019 Hooker recorded five tackles with one pass defended. — Nathan Baird, cleveland.com, "Former Ohio State football safety Malik Hooker snags one-handed interception | Buckeye Breakfast," 9 Sep. 2019 The defending District 19-6A champions open league action Sept. 13 at Tompkins. — Jack Marrion, Houston Chronicle, "Katy ISD lands 23 volleyball players on AVCA national lists," 9 Sep. 2019 Centennial is considered one of California's top-five teams with its only loss coming in its opener to two-time defending national champion Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei, which is coming off a 71-21 win at Peoria Centennial. — Richard Obert, azcentral, "Five-star DB Kelee Ringo adds dynamic offensive dimension in Saguaro rout of Faith Lutheran," 9 Sep. 2019 The secretary did not address the timing but defended inviting the Taliban to Camp David. — Fox News, "Pompeo on the key reason Trump called off Camp David peace talks; Trump-Legend-Teigen in Twitter spat," 9 Sep. 2019 Having spent three decades overturning the convictions of the wrongly imprisoned and defending anyone on Death Row, Stevenson has been at the vanguard of a righteous fight. — John Defore, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Just Mercy': Film Review | TIFF 2019," 7 Sep. 2019 That was just one shot better than runner-up Izzy Pellot of Lake Mary, the defending Class 3A state champion. — Steve Gorches, orlandosentinel.com, "First Academy flexes muscles in girls golf win," 7 Sep. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'defend.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of defend

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

History and Etymology for defend

Middle English defenden, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French defendre, defender, going back to Latin dēfendere "to ward off, fend off, repel danger from, protect," from dē- de- + -fendere, presumably, "to strike, hit" (unattested without prefixes), going back to Indo-European *gwhen-dh-, extended determinate form of *gwhen-, *gwhn- "strike, kill," whence Hittite kuenzi "(s/he) kills," kunanzi "(they) kill," Sanskrit hánti "(s/he) strikes, kills," ghnánti "(they) strike, kill," Greek theínein "to strike," épethnon "(I) killed," Old Irish gonaid "(s/he) pierces, wounds, kills," Welsh gwan- "stab, pierce," Lithuanian genù, giñti "to drive (cattle, etc.)," Old Church Slavic ženǫ, gŭnati "to drive, chase out, expel"; also, from nominal derivative *gwhon-, Greek phónos "bloodshed, murder," and from *gwhń-tih2, Germanic *gunþī, *gunþjō, whence Old English gūþ "battle, combat," Old Saxon gūđea, Old Norse gunnr, guđr

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More Definitions for defend

defend

verb
How to pronounce defend (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of defend

: to fight in order to keep (someone or something) safe : to not allow a person or thing to hurt, damage, or destroy (someone or something)
: to fight or work hard in order to keep (something, such as a right, interest, cause, etc.) from being taken away
: to speak or write in support of (someone or something that is being challenged or criticized)

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