defence

American  

[dih-fens] / dɪˈfɛns /

noun

defenced, defencing

1. British. variant of defense.

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defence British  

/ 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

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Other Word Forms

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

Etymology

Origin of defence

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

Compare meaning

How does defence compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• offence vs. defence

Explanation

This word does NOT mean taking down a fence; it is the British spelling of "defense" — a word that means the act of protecting or defending. Wearing garlic around your neck might be your defence against vampires. Defence can be verbal as well as physical. If you're in court charged with a crime, you (and your lawyer, if you have one) are called "the defence." If your only defence is that you were sleepwalking when you robbed a gas station, you might be going away for awhile. If you play defence in a team sport, your main job is to keep the other team from scoring (so stay wide awake).

Example Sentences

A German government spokeswoman confirmed Macron and Merz discussed the fighter jet programme Friday morning and instructed defence ministers to continue work "on various aspects of cooperation and to agree on the next steps."

From Barron's • Apr. 24, 2026

"We had a good discussion this morning with the Chancellor and we have instructed our defence ministries to work on a number of areas, covering various topics –- not just the fighter jet," Macron said.

From Barron's • Apr. 24, 2026

In mitigation, defence solicitor Robert Hanratty said Doughty, who appeared in court in a wheelchair, accepted responsibility for his behaviour.

From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026

The chancellor, who took power in May last year, promised to revive the economy through huge public outlays on defence and infrastructure and a barrage of reforms.

From Barron's • Apr. 22, 2026

The Occamy is aggressive to all who approach it, particularly in defence of its eggs, whose shells are made of the purest, softest silver.

From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling