civil defense

American  

noun

1. plans or activities organized by civilians and civilian authorities for the protection of civilian population and property in times of such disasters or emergencies as war or floods.

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Etymology

Origin of civil defense

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

civil defense

Hollowed out by years of economic collapse and corruption under Rodríguez and her predecessors, Venezuela’s army, civil defense and other emergency responders are weaker than ever, analysts said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

“We’ll be here till tomorrow dealing with this blaze,” said Major Issa Hamdoun, a civil defense commander, as he watched his men manhandling the fire hose into the wreckage of the building.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2026

"It rained a lot, the riverbank collapsed even further, and civil defense called us to evacuate," Luiz Otavio Souza, a 35-year-old salesman who had to leave his home and whose nephew is missing, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Feb. 26, 2026

"It requires surveys to discover and track NEOs, campaigns to characterize those that are hazardous, modeling efforts to understand and predict impact effects and associated consequences, and mitigation through impact avoidance and/or civil defense."

From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2025

If the warning sounded, Soviet civil defense planners explained, up to two million people could fit into the subway tunnels under Moscow.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin