defence mechanism
Britishnoun
-
psychoanal a usually unconscious mental process designed to reduce the anxiety, shame, etc, associated with instinctive desires
-
physiol the protective response of the body against disease organisms
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.
Humour can be a highly adapted defence mechanism, she says, which can make comedians more opaque than other contestants.
From BBC • May 14, 2025
Bacteria naturally possess these genes as a defence mechanism.
From Science Daily • Nov. 17, 2023
"You start to rely on that because that is your defence mechanism."
From BBC • Jan. 27, 2023
The experimental therapy, a T-cell engager, is a part of the immunotherapy class of treatments that use the body's own defence mechanism to fight cancerous cells.
From Reuters • Jul. 5, 2022
The Fire Crab does, however, have its own defence mechanism: it shoots flames from its rear end when attacked.
From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling
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.
