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

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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

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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

Both full-backs have been used as tactical tools to undo a team's defensive strategy too:

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

One lists his apparent strengths, saying he is an outstanding defensive coach with a “relentlessness and desire to prove himself.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

A sharp selloff in shares of companies closely tied to the AI trade is driving investors toward safety, sparking a rotation into defensive stocks and fueling a surprise rally in hard-hit Treasury notes and bonds.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026

Ziaire Williams set the tone of the Lakers’ new defensive style, pressuring the ball the full length of the court and injecting energy into his teammates.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

But there are also basic defensive strategies you yourself can employ.

From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi

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

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

Instead, they say the best way to think about the market is just to group all sectors into three buckets — cyclicals, defensives and growth.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026

“The fact that defensives are underperforming, is that a good thing or a bad thing?” he asked, rhetorically.

From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 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

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Related Words

• opposing

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