defense mechanism

American  

noun

1. Physiology. the defensive reaction of an organism, as against a pathogenic microorganism.

2. Psychology. an unconscious process, as denial, that protects an individual from unacceptable or painful ideas or impulses.

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defense mechanism Cultural  

1. In psychology, a Freudian term referring to an unconscious avoidance of something that produces anxiety or some other unpleasant emotion. For example, someone who blots out the memory of a terrible accident is using a defense mechanism. Regression and sublimation are common defense mechanisms.

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Etymology

Origin of defense mechanism

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

A stingray’s defense mechanism is to camouflage itself on top of the ocean floor’s sand or buried under it.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 1, 2025

For Divon, Pallywood is less a conspiracy theory than a psychological defense mechanism.

From Slate • May 30, 2025

“It was a defense mechanism because of my past history.”

From Salon • Apr. 27, 2025

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids likely first evolved as a defense mechanism in plants, which then became a commodity for moths.

From Science Daily • Apr. 22, 2024

It just about shattered every defense mechanism and every pretext I had against going to school.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane