1 defender | Definition of defender

defender

noun
deĀ·​fendĀ·​er | \ di-ˈfen-dər How to pronounce defender (audio) \

Definition of defender

1 : one that defends
2 : a player in a sport (such as football) assigned to a defensive position

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Examples of defender in a Sentence

one of the traditional roles of an older brother is that of schoolyard defender

Recent Examples on the Web

There may not be a smarter defender in the game outside of Draymond Green. Michael Shapiro, SI.com, "Can the Sixers Reach the Finals After a Whirlwind Year?," 30 Aug. 2019 Fraser was a defender for the Rapids from 2001-2003 and member of the Colorado Foxes before that from 1990-1995. Jake Shapiro, The Denver Post, "Robin Fraser after taking Rapids’ head coaching job: ā€œIn every way, I’ve improvedā€," 26 Aug. 2019 Wheeler is a tremendous defender, recording 123 tackles last season. Mick Mccabe, Detroit Free Press, "Michigan high school football: Mick McCabe's top 25 teams for 2019," 25 Aug. 2019 Javier Baez is a superior defender at shortstop, but the addition of Addison Russell provides Maddon with a more familiar option if Baez is unavailable or pulled during the latter stages of a game. Mark Gonzales, chicagotribune.com, "5 takeaways from the Cubs-Pirates series, including Jon Lester’s adjustments and middle infield improvements," 19 Aug. 2019 Harris is a vigorous defender of the culture of free speech, and his interviews are always penetrating. Kyle Smith, National Review, "ā€˜Don’t Apologize’: Ricky Gervais Takes On Verbal Terrorism," 16 Aug. 2019 Dewerk is also an interior defender for the Wildcats. Phil Jensen, The Mercury News, "Los Gatos football team’s line play a strength," 15 Aug. 2019 Ratcliffe is a frequent Trump defender who fiercely questioned former special counsel Robert Mueller during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week. Jonathan Lemire, Twin Cities, "Trump pick for national intelligence director is withdrawing," 3 Aug. 2019 Ratcliffe is a frequent Trump defender who fiercely questioned former special counsel Robert Mueller during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week. Anchorage Daily News, "Trump’s contrversial pick for national intelligence director withdraws from consideration," 2 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'defender.' 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 defender

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for defender

Middle English defendour, defender, borrowed from Anglo-French defendour, defendur, from defend-, stem of defendre "to defend" + -our, -ur -or entry 1

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More Definitions for defender

defender

noun
deĀ·​fendĀ·​er | \ di-ˈfen-dər How to pronounce defender (audio) \

Kids Definition of defender

1 : a person or thing that protects from danger or attack
2 : a player in a sport who tries to keep the other team from scoring

defender

noun
deĀ·​fendĀ·​er

Legal Definition of defender

: a lawyer who represents defendants especially : public defender

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More from Merriam-Webster on defender

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with defender

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for defender

Spanish Central: Translation of defender

Nglish: Translation of defender for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of defender for Arabic Speakers