defenseless
Americanadjective
Explanation
Someone who's defenseless is vulnerable and unprotected. Babies need to be taken care of because they're completely defenseless. A brand new chess player is somewhat defenseless against an experienced player, and a kitten is defenseless without its mother's fierce protection. Con men sometimes target people they see as defenseless, like the very elderly. The word defenseless dates from the 16th century, combining defense, "action of guarding or protecting," from the Latin defendere, "protect," and -less, "without or lacking."
Vocabulary lists containing defenseless
Power Suffix: -less
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -less
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-less
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The line that set off the frenzy, in its entirety, is: “He wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the emir of Qatar.”
From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026
His resolve to protect the defenseless leads him to his most daring—and dangerous—act of bravery yet, one that will keep readers in suspense through the book’s heart-stopping final pages.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026
“So, I was thoroughly disappointed; the guy was defenseless in the air. I know Steve was trying to block the shot, but the game’s a 25-point game. You don’t do that.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2026
"Fragile is the flesh of defenseless populations, tried by so many wars, ongoing or concluded, leaving behind rubble and open wounds," the pope said at the mass in St Peter's Basilica.
From Barron's ● Dec. 25, 2025
But the family also knew another side of Luma—that of a sensitive young woman with a deep concern for the weak or defenseless.
From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
