defence

[ dih-fens ]

/ dɪˈfɛns /

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

Nearby words

defective bacteriophage, defective virus, defective year, defector, defederalize, defence, defence in depth, defence mechanism, defend, defendant, defender of the bond

Related forms

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. 2019

Examples from the Web for defenceless

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
The aid which Pyrrhus brought did little good to the Tarentines, and his final departure in 274 left them defenceless.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 3|Various
She was in no condition to be left alone, this delicate and fragile child, defenceless and beset.
The Destroying Angel|Louis Joseph Vance
On the third day after the tumult, Genseric boldly advanced from the port of Ostia to the gates of the defenceless city.
The History of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire|Edward Gibbon

The great object in a sea-fight was to charge an opponent amidships, or on the stern, or on some defenceless part.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine--Volume 62, No. 386, December, 1847|Various
Orange loyalty was then licensed and let loose upon the defenceless Roman Catholic population in Ulster.
The Land-War In Ireland (1870)|James Godkin

British Dictionary definitions for defenceless

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

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