defence

[dih-fens]

noun

defenced, defencing 

1. British.,  variant of defense.

defence

/ dɪˈfɛns /

noun

1. resistance against danger, attack, or harm; protection

2. a person or thing that provides such resistance

3. a plea, essay, speech, etc, in support of something; vindication; justification

4. 1. a country's military measures or resources

   2. ( as modifier )

      defence spending

5. law a defendant's denial of the truth of the allegations or charge against him

6. law the defendant and his legal advisers collectively Compare prosecution

7. sport

   1. the action of protecting oneself, one's goal, or one's allotted part of the playing area against an opponent's attacks

   2. the method of doing this

   3. the players in a team whose function is to do this

8. American football (usually preceded by the)

   1. the team that does not have possession of the ball

   2. the members of a team that play in such circumstances

9. psychoanal See defence mechanism

10. (plural) fortifications

Other Word Forms

• defenceable adjective
• defenceless adjective
• defencelessly adverb
• defencelessness noun
• predefence noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of defence¹

C13: from Old French, from Late Latin dēfensum, past participle of dēfendere to _defend

Example Sentences

Pete Hoekstra, US ambassador to Canada, told an Ottawa audience in September that Washington had hoped to negotiate a "bigger" deal with Canada, one that covers both trade and defence.

From BBC

Officially it was because Lecornu had done the dirty by naming former finance minister Bruno Le Maire as his pick for defence.

From BBC

Israel's defence minister has warned that those who stay during the offensive would be "terrorists and supporters of terror".

From BBC

"We cannot let the nation be lost in the hands of some few people. I also advise my chief of defence to take action against what is happening in the country," he says.

From BBC

Drones were also seen over neighbouring Norway and Germany, prompting European leaders to accelerate discussions about strengthening air defences.

From BBC