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defence

[ dih-fens ]

noun

defenced, defencing.
  1. British. variant of defense.


defence

/ ɪˈɛԲ /

noun

  1. resistance against danger, attack, or harm; protection
  2. a person or thing that provides such resistance
  3. a plea, essay, speech, etc, in support of something; vindication; justification
    1. a country's military measures or resources
    2. ( as modifier )

      defence spending

  4. law a defendant's denial of the truth of the allegations or charge against him
  5. law the defendant and his legal advisers collectively Compare prosecution
  6. sport
    1. the action of protecting oneself, one's goal, or one's allotted part of the playing area against an opponent's attacks
    2. the method of doing this
    3. the players in a team whose function is to do this
  7. American football usually preceded by the
    1. the team that does not have possession of the ball
    2. the members of a team that play in such circumstances
  8. psychoanal See defence mechanism
  9. plural fortifications
“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
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Derived Forms

  • ˈڱԳ, adverb
  • ˈڱԳ, adjective
  • ˈڱԳness, noun
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Other Word Forms

  • ·ڱԳa· adjective
  • ·ڱԳl adjective
  • ·ڱԳl·ly adverb
  • ·ڱԳl·ness noun
  • d·ڱԳ noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of defence1

C13: from Old French, from Late Latin ŧڱԲܳ, past participle of ŧڱԻ to defend
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Compare Meanings

How does defence compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

"China has its foot on the blood vein… of US and European defence systems," he added.

From

Trump has continued to stand by his defence secretary and others involved in the incident, telling reporters earlier this week: "Pete's doing a great job ... Everybody's happy with him."

From

Hunter was the first draft prospect in 27 years to have played significant time on both defence and offence in college - at cornerback and wide receiver.

From

Bolsonaro was visited in hospital by a court official on Wednesday, who delivered a summons giving him five days to present his initial defence against coup charges, in preparation for his trial.

From

But toxicologist Dr Stephen Morley, giving evidence for the defence, said the levels in the victim's blood were "three times what toxicologists would be comfortable with", describing them as "likely to be fatal".

From

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