defensive

American  

[dih-fen-siv] / dɪˈfɛn sɪv /

adjective

1. serving to defend; protective.

   defensive armament.

2. made or carried on for the purpose of resisting attack.

   defensive treaty;

   a defensive attitude.

3. of or relating to defense.

4. (of stocks, securities, etc.)

   1. able to provide moderately steady growth with minimal risk.

      The bank has put a large percentage of its assets in defensive rather than growth stocks.

   2. considered stable and relatively safe for investment, especially during a decline in the economy.

5. excessively concerned with guarding against the real or imagined threat of criticism, injury to one's ego, or exposure of one's shortcomings.

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noun

• defensives
  plural

1. a position or attitude of defense.

   to be on the defensive about one's mistakes.

2. Obsolete. something that serves to defend.

defensive British  

/ dɪˈfɛnsɪv /

adjective

1. intended, suitable, or done for defence, as opposed to offence

2. rejecting criticisms of oneself or covering up one's failings

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noun

1. a position of defence

2. in an attitude or position of defence, as in being ready to reject criticism

defensive Idioms  

1. see on the defensive.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• defensiveness
  noun
• nondefensive
  adjective
• overdefensive
  adjective
• semidefensive
  adjective
• undefensive
  adjective
• defensively
  adverb
• nondefensively
  adverb
• overdefensively
  adverb
• semidefensively
  adverb
• undefensively
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• defensives
  plural

Etymology

Origin of defensive

First recorded in 1350–1400; from Medieval Latin dēfēnsīvus ( see defense, -ive); replacing Middle English defensif, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin, as above

Explanation

Someone on the defensive is concerned with justifying their actions or words. They have a defensive attitude as they try to protect themselves. If you know that to defend is to protect, you have an idea what defensive means. When a person is acting defensive, they're trying to protect or justify themselves. People who are insecure or guilty tend to act defensive. Also, defensive players in football try to prevent the other side from scoring, just like defensive military strategies try to protect something. When someone has a defensive attitude, or is forced to defend something, we also say they're "on the defensive."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

defensive defensives

Everton's midfielders step up but their defensive line doesn't follow, leaving space between the lines.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026

European stock indexes largely opened lower, though AI-related shares gained, as momentum in defensive sectors stalled after strong gains in the last session.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Fifth-year senior defensive end Zuriah Fisher went so far as to compliment the way he “eats at breakfast.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

Buckingham Palace is "on the defensive", the i Paper reports.

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026

Crystal can turn into a full-on defensive lineman when she wants to.

From "The Benefits of Being an Octopus" by Ann Braden

In general, do you have statistics on outcomes for forward defensives, cuts, drives, hooks, pulls, etc?

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

Investors are now rapidly rotating out of those legacy growth stocks into what’s considered cheaper stocks, such as defensives and cyclicals, he said.

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 4, 2026

Best suited for contrarian, long-horizon capital seeking to own balance-sheet strength and earnings quality ahead of a future rotation toward defensives and value.

From Barron's ● Dec. 11, 2025

Aaron Donald and Ernest Jones IV are gone, so Rams had big defensives plan when they drafted Florida State front disrupters Jared Verse and Braden Fiske.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2024

Few realize how important a role sound plays in what might be called the defensives of our every-day life.

From The Sign at Six by Stewart Edward White

Related Words

• opposing