protection
- the act of protecting or the state of being protected; preservation from injury or harm.
- a thing, person, or group that protects: This vaccine is a protection against disease.
- patronage.
- Insurance. coverage(def 1).
- Informal.
- money paid to racketeers for a guarantee against threatened violence.
- bribe money paid to the police, politicians, or other authorities for overlooking criminal activity.
- Economics. protectionism.
- a document that assures safety from harm, delay, or the like, for the person, persons, or property specified in it.
- Archaic. a document given by the U.S. customs authorities to a sailor traveling abroad certifying that the holder is a citizen of the U.S.
Origin of protection
Synonyms
See more synonyms for protection on Thesaurus.comSynonym study
Examples from the Web for protection
Contemporary Examples
Satirists occupy a perilous position—to skewer dogma and cant, and to antagonize the establishment while needing its protection.
The protection will last as long as Winston can still fling the ball 50 yards downfield to a streaking wide receiver.
Jameis Winston Cleared of Rape Like Every Other College Sports StarRobert Silverman
December 22, 2014
There is, in fact, a distinction in the level of protection.
But as a lawyer, she uses law to contribute to their protection.
Why are “threats,” unlike other scary speech, outside the protection of the First Amendment?
Does Free Speech Cover Murder Fantasies? The Supreme Court’s Definition of a ‘Threat’Geoffrey R. Stone
December 1, 2014
Historical Examples
Those who were initiated were supposed to be peculiarly under the protection of the gods.
PhilotheaLydia Maria Child
But the friends of Protection did not leave the Premier without opposition.
The Grand Old ManRichard B. Cook
Protection grew fierce, and fanned the burning sense of wrong.
Weighed and WantingGeorge MacDonald
I want you, moreover, to advocate our American doctrine of Protection.
I knew how useless it was, and I remembered that he himself had armed me for my protection.
The Bacillus of BeautyHarriet Stark
protection
- the act of protecting or the condition of being protected
- something that protects
- the imposition of duties or quotas on imports, designed for the protection of domestic industries against overseas competition, expansion of domestic employment, etc
- Also called: protectionismthe system, policy, or theory of such restrictionsCompare free trade
- a document that grants protection or immunity from arrest or harassment to a person, esp a traveller
- mountaineering security on a climb provided by running belays, etc
- informal
- Also called: protection moneymoney demanded by gangsters for freedom from molestation
- freedom from molestation purchased in this way
Word Origin and History for protection
n.
mid-14c., "shelter, defense; keeping, guardianship;" late 14c. as "that which protects," from Old French proteccion "protection, shield" (12c.) and directly from Late Latin protectionem (nominative protectio) "a covering over," noun of action from past participle stem of protegere "protect, cover in front," from pro- "in front" + tegere "to cover" (see stegosaurus).
A common Old English word for "protect" was beorgan. International economic sense is from 1789. In gangster sense, "freedom from molestation in exchange for money," it is attested from 1860. Ecological sense of "attempted preservation by laws" is from 1880 (originally of wild birds in Britain). Also in medieval England, "the protection or maintenance of a lord or patron; sponsorship." To put (someone) out of protection meant to deprive him or her of the security of the protection of the kingdom's laws.