- to protect (a person, place, etc) from harm or danger; ward off an attack on
- (transitive) to support in the face of criticism, esp by argument or evidence
- to represent (a defendant) in court in a civil or criminal action
- to guard or protect (oneself, one's goal, etc) against attack
- (transitive) to protect (a championship or title) against a challenge
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
de•fend /dɪˈfɛnd/USA pronunciation
v. [ ~ + obj]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- ward off attack from;
protect:The armed forces defend our country. - to support or maintain by argument, evidence, etc.;
uphold:He defended the principle of freedom of the press. - Lawto serve as attorney for (a defendant) in a trial:defended her clients against the charge of conspiracy.
- to attempt to retain (a championship title) in competition against a challenger.
- defend is a verb, defense is a noun, defensive is an adjective:The lawyer agreed to defend the murder suspect. The team's defense kept a lot of points from being scored. He seems defensive when you ask him what's wrong.See -fend-.
de•fend
(di fend′),USA pronunciation v.t.
v.i.
de•fend′a•ble, adj.
de•fend′er, n.
- to ward off attack from;
guard against assault or injury (usually fol. by from or against):The sentry defended the gate against sudden attack. - to maintain by argument, evidence, etc.;
uphold:She defended her claim successfully. - to contest (a legal charge, claim, etc.).
- Lawto serve as attorney for (a defendant):He has defended some of the most notorious criminals.
- to support (an argument, theory, etc.) in the face of criticism;
prove the validity of (a dissertation, thesis, or the like) by answering arguments and questions put by a committee of specialists. - to attempt to retain (a championship title, position, etc.), as in a competition against a challenger.
v.i.
- Lawto enter or make a defense.
- Latin dēfendere to ward off, equivalent. to dē- de- + -fendere to strike
- Old French defendre
- Middle English defenden 1200–50
de•fend′er, n.
- 1. shelter, screen, shield; garrison, fortify. Defend, guard, preserve, protect all mean to keep safe. To defend is to strive to keep safe by resisting attack:to defend one's country.To guard is to watch over in order to keep safe:to guard a camp.To preserve is to keep safe in the midst of danger, either in a single instance or continuously:to preserve a spirit of conciliation.To protect is to keep safe by interposing a shield or barrier:to protect books by means of heavy paper covers. 2. vindicate.
- 1. attack.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
defend /dɪˈfɛnd/ vb
'defending champion' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):