defence

[ dih-fens ]

/ dɪˈfɛns /

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noun, verb (used with object), de·fenced, de·fenc·ing.

British. variant of defense.

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OTHER WORDS FROM defence

de·fence·a·ble, adjectivede·fence·less, adjectivede·fence·less·ly, adverbde·fence·less·ness, noun

pre·de·fence, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use defence in a sentence

The “find and operate” missions that followed were directed at the most vulnerable and defenceless individuals in the country.
Hold Onto Your Penis|David Frum, Justin Green|November 29, 2012|DAILY BEAST
I suppose you think it's brave to come back from the front and threaten a defenceless man with a revolver?
First Plays|A. A. Milne
Should Gorton turn up he is just the one to frighten a defenceless woman, and purchase his own silence.
Elster's Folly|Mrs. Henry Wood
There was nothing to stay us three armed men in this place, with but three against us, and they well-nigh defenceless.
A Prince of Cornwall|Charles W. Whistler

Now is my time, thought I; he will be defenceless, and will fall an easy prey to me; and I prepared my roomal for work.
Confessions of a Thug|Philip Meadows Taylor
Yet I cannot fly out alone—a poor defenceless song-bird, amongst all the crows and hawks.
God Wills It!|William Stearns Davis

British Dictionary definitions for defence

defence

US defense

/ (dɪˈfɛns) /

noun

resistance against danger, attack, or harm; protection

a person or thing that provides such resistance

a plea, essay, speech, etc, in support of something; vindication; justification

a country's military measures or resources
(as modifier)defence spending

law a defendant's denial of the truth of the allegations or charge against him

law the defendant and his legal advisers collectivelyCompare prosecution

sport

the action of protecting oneself, one's goal, or one's allotted part of the playing area against an opponent's attacks
the method of doing this
the defence the players in a team whose function is to do this

American football (usually preceded by the)

the team that does not have possession of the ball
the members of a team that play in such circumstances

psychoanal See defence mechanism

(plural) fortifications

Derived forms of defence

defenceless or US defenseless, adjectivedefencelessly or US defenselessly, adverbdefencelessness or US defenselessness, noun

Word Origin for defence

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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012