defend
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defend
- /dɪˈfɛnd/ UK
- /dɪˈfɛnd/ Canada, US
- /diˈfɛnd/ Canada, US
- /dəˈfɛnd/ Canada, US
- /dɪˈfɪnd/ US, pin pen merger
- /diˈfɪnd/ US, pin pen merger
- /dəˈfɪnd/ US, pin pen merger
- /dəˈfend/ Australia, New Zealand
- [dəˈfend] ~ [dəˈfe̞nd] Australia
- [dəˈfe̝nd] ~ [dəˈfɪnd] New Zealand
Rhymes with -ɛnd
Where it comes from
From Middle English defenden, from Old French defendre, deffendre (Modern French défendre), from Latin dēfendō (“to ward off”), from Proto-Italic *fendō, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰen-. Displaced native Old English bewerian.
verb defends · defending · defended · defend
- To ward off attacks against (something or someone). Most Zionists hoped for a state of their own, but early in the 20th century, writers like Hillel Solotaroff and Chaim Zhitlowsky, both Yiddish-speaking immigrant intellectuals in New York, imagined another alternative: a federation of self-governing anarchist communes in Palestine that would defend
- To ward off attacks from (something or someone).
- To support by words or writing; to vindicate, talk in favour of. Justice Elena Kagan on Thursday defended the code of conduct the Supreme Court created last year, but conceded there needs to be a way to enforce the rules for it to be more effective.
- To make legal defence of; to represent (the accused). Philip Miles, defending, said: "This was a single instance, there was no allegation of continuing behaviour over a long period of time."
- To focus one's energies and talents on preventing opponents from scoring, as opposed to focusing on scoring.
- Mostly in tests. The action of not putting force into hitting a shot, but to conserve energy and wear down bowlers so they can attack later. The teams strategy was to defend but score runs as well for the first 20 overs.
- To attempt to retain a title, or attempt to reach the same stage in a competition as one did in the previous instance of that competition.
- To call a raise from the big blind.
- To ward off, repel (an attack or attacker). The vertue is, that neither steele, nor stone The stroke thereof from entrance may defend[…].
- To prevent, to keep (from doing something).
- To prohibit, forbid. Broder said sir launcelot wete ye wel I am ful lothe to departe oute of this realme but the quene hath defended me soo hyhely that me semeth she wille neuer be my good lady as she hath ben
Similar: beshield, beward, brood, cape for, defend, fend, guard, preserve, protect, safeguard, secure, shelter, shield, ward · Opposite: attack
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: guard, hold, champion, maintain, support, fight back, fight, fight down, represent, oppose, fend for, defence, defense, defensive, protect, self-defence
Translations
Every language
verb ward off attacks against
| Español | defender, defensar, volver por sí |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 방어하다 bang'eohada |
| 日本語 | 守る mamoru, 防ぐ fusegu |
| 中文 | 保衛 /保卫 bǎowèi, 守衛 /守卫 shǒuwèi, 捍衛 /捍卫 hànwèi |
| हिन्दी | रक्षा करना rakṣā karnā |
| Português | defender, proteger |
| Français | défendre |
| Deutsch | verteidigen |
| Italiano | difendere, proteggere |
| Ελληνικά | υπερασπίζομαι yperaspízomai, αμύνομαι amýnomai, υπεραμύνομαι yperamýnomai |
| Română | apăra |
| Русский | защища́ть zaščiščátʹ, защити́ть zaščitítʹ, обороня́ть oboronjátʹ, оборони́ть oboronítʹ, оберега́ть oberegátʹ, бере́чь beréčʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | bảo vệ, che chở, chống giữ |
| العربية | دَافَعَ dāfaʕa |
| עברית | הֵגֵן hegén |
Talk about this word "defend." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/defend. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. defend. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/defend "defend." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/defend.Cite this
@misc{defend_2026,
title = {defend},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/defend},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
