defend

defend
I
(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)
v. t. support, prove; vindicate. See evidence, defense.
II
(Roget's IV) v.
1. [To keep off an enemy; often used figuratively ]
Syn. protect, shield, guard, shelter, screen, resist, beat off, avert, fight for, withstand, cover, retain, hold, repel danger from, ward off, contend for, keep off, stave off, keep at bay, hold at bay, take evasive action, fend off, hedge, entrench, mine, resist invasion, stand on the defensive, provide air cover for; sustain a mortar attack, aerial attack, machine gun attack, etc.; fortify, garrison, convoy, escort, fence round, give an air umbrella; see also sense 2; guard 2 .
Ant. yield*, surrender, give up.
2. [To provide general protection]
Syn. safeguard, secure, maintain, uphold, preserve, espouse, champion, insure, patronize, watch, sustain, apologize for, rally to, support, house, keep, second, provide sanctuary, take in, sustain, bolster, nourish, foster, care for, compass about, cherish, guard against, look after; see also sense 1; raise 2 , support 5 .
Ant. abandon*, leave, forsake.
3. [To support an accused person or thing]
Syn. plead, justify, bear one out, uphold, support, second, exonerate, back, back up, vindicate, advocate, aid, espouse the cause of, befriend, say in defense, be a partisan of, guarantee, endorse, warrant, prove a case, exculpate, maintain, recommend, rationalize, plead one's cause, say a good word for, argue for, speak for, stand up for, plead for, put in a good word for, apologize for, take up, go to bat for*, cover up for*, stick up for*; see also support 2 .
Ant. convict*, accuse, charge.
III
(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) v.
1. protect fight for, guard, fend off, withstand, hold at bay, shield, secure, ward off, preserve.
2. support advocate, back, uphold, stick up for, stand behind, *go to bat for, plead, justify.
ANT.: offend, attack, let down one s guard
IV
(Roget's Thesaurus II) verb 1. To keep safe from danger, attack, or harm: guard, preserve, protect, safeguard, secure, shield, ward. Archaic: fend. See ATTACK. 2. To support against arguments, attack, or criticism: apologize, justify, maintain, vindicate. Idioms: speak up for, stand up for, stick up for. See SUPPORT.

English dictionary for students. 2013.

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Synonyms:
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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Defend — De*fend (d[ e]*f[e^]nd ), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Defended}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Defending}.] [F. d[ e]fendre, L. defendere; de + fendere (only in comp.) to strike; perh. akin to Gr. qei nein to strike, and E. dint. Cf. {Dint}, {Defense}, {Fend}.] 1.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • defend — de·fend vt 1: to drive danger or attack away from using a weapon to defend oneself 2: to act as attorney for (a defendant) appointed to defend the accused 3: to deny or oppose the rights of a plaintiff in regard to (a suit or claim) intend to… …   Law dictionary

  • defend — de‧fend [dɪˈfend] verb [transitive] LAW 1. if a lawyer defends someone charged with a crime, he or she represents that person and argues that they are not guilty of the charge 2. to do something in order to stop something being taken away or to… …   Financial and business terms

  • defend — 1 Defend, protect, shield, guard, safeguard mean to keep secure from danger or against attack. Defend implies the use of means to ward off something that actually threatens or to repel something that actually attacks {raise a large army to defend …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • defend — mid 13c., from O.Fr. defendre (12c.) defend, resist, and directly from L. defendere ward off, protect, guard, allege in defense, from de from, away (see DE (Cf. de )) + fendere to strike, push, from PIE root *gwhen to strike, kill (see BANE (Cf …   Etymology dictionary

  • defend — [v1] protect avert, battle, beat off, bulwark, care for, cherish, conserve, contend, cover, entrench, espouse, fend off, fight, fight for, fortify, foster, garrison, guard, guard against, hedge, hold, hold at bay, house, insure, keep safe, look… …   New thesaurus

  • defend — ► VERB 1) resist an attack on; protect from harm or danger. 2) conduct the case for (the party being accused or sued) in a lawsuit. 3) attempt to justify. 4) compete to retain (a title or seat) in a contest or election. 5) (in sport) protect one… …   English terms dictionary

  • defend — [dē fend′, difend′] vt. [ME defenden < OFr defendre < L defendere, to ward off, repel < de , away, from + fendere, to strike < IE base * gwhen , to strike > Gr theinein, to kill, strike, OE guth, combat] 1. a) to guard from attack; …   English World dictionary

  • defend */*/*/ — UK [dɪˈfend] / US verb Word forms defend : present tense I/you/we/they defend he/she/it defends present participle defending past tense defended past participle defended 1) [transitive] to protect someone or something from attack Thousands of… …   English dictionary

  • defend — de|fend W3S3 [dıˈfend] v [Date: 1200 1300; : Old French; Origin: defendre, from Latin defendere, from fendere to hit ] 1.) [I and T] to do something in order to protect someone or something from being attacked ▪ a struggle to defend our homeland… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • defend — de|fend [ dı fend ] verb *** ▸ 1 protect from attack ▸ 2 speak to support someone/something ▸ 3 prevent something from failing ▸ 4 in law ▸ 5 try to win again ▸ 6 in sports 1. ) transitive to protect someone or something from attack: Thousands of …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

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