- (military) military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies;
"they died in the defense of Stalingrad" "they were developed for the defense program"
- protection from harm;
"sanitation is the best defense against disease"
- (sports) the team that is trying to prevent the other team from scoring;
"his teams are always good on defense"
- the justification for some act or belief;
"he offered a persuasive defense of the theory"
- (psychiatry) an unconscious process that tries to reduce the anxiety associated with instinctive desires
- the federal department responsible for safeguarding national security of the United States; created in 1947
- the defendant and his legal advisors collectively;
"the defense called for a mistrial"
- the speech act of answering an attack on your assertions;
"his refutation of the charges was short and persuasive" "in defense he said the other man started it"
- an organization of defenders that provides resistance against attack;
"he joined the defense against invasion"
- a structure used to defend against attack;
"the artillery battered down the defenses"
- a defendant's answer or plea denying the truth of the charges against him;
"he gave evidence for the defense"
- the act of defending someone or something against attack or injury;
"a good boxer needs a good defense" "defense against hurricanes is an urgent problem"
