the pressed and formed sheet-metal part mounted over the road wheels of an automobile, bicycle, etc., to reduce the splashing of mud, water, and the like.
a device on the front of a locomotive, streetcar, or the like, for clearing the track of obstructions.
a mudguard or splashboard on a horse-drawn vehicle.
Nautical. a piece of timber, bundle of rope, or the like, hung over the side of a vessel to lessen shock or prevent chafing, as between the vessel and a dock or another vessel.
a low metal guard before an open fireplace, to keep back falling coals.
a person or thing that wards something off.
a low metal frame which confines falling coals to the hearth
a metal frame fitted to the front of locomotives to absorb shock, clear the track, etc
a cushion-like device, such as a car tyre hung over the side of a vessel to reduce damage resulting from accidental contact or collision
Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): wing. the part of a car body that surrounds the wheels
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English fendour, aphetic variant of defendour defender ( def. )
A fender is the part of a car that protects and frames its wheels and keeps mud from splashing it. Most modern vehicles have fenders on their front wheels. When you get into a minor car accident, you can call it a "fender bender," and it's possible that your fenders did get slightly dented. Another kind of fender guards or protects a ship, train, or streetcar; in the case of a train, this is also called a "cowcatcher," and it can actually push debris off the track to keep the train from hitting it. This 13th century word is a shortened form of defender.
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“Rather, Fender is working with the manufacturers to redesign the shapes, while the manufacturers sell off existing unauthorized inventory,” the company said.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 27, 2026
Fender was emboldened by a recent European court ruling that declared the Stratocaster a copyrightable work of art.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 27, 2026
Fender Musical Instruments sent cease-and-desist letters to guitar builders, including PRS, to stop production of Strat-shaped guitars.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 27, 2026
Fender Musical Instruments is trying to stop that and claim control of the iconic shape.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 27, 2026
Yesterday, after Ms. Fender had announced the section leaders, she’d assigned the rest of us our chairs based on how good she thought we were as musicians.
From "Maybe He Just Likes You" by Barbara Dee
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.
