51Թ

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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 51Թ Forms

  • ·ڱԳa· adjective
  • ·ڱԳl adjective
  • ·ڱԳl·ly adverb
  • ·ڱԳl·ness noun
  • d·ڱԳ noun
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51Թ 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.

While Dutton criticised Labour's tax relief measures and spending, he then announced that he would also effect tax rebates and big spends, including billions to boost defence and fix an ailing public healthcare system.

From

Poland, which shares borders with both Russia and Ukraine, says it will spend almost 5% of GDP on defence this year, the highest in Nato.

From

A team of researchers began searching for a type of immune defence called broadly neutralising antibodies.

From

The collision happened in the early hours of Friday morning at the junction of the Napo and Amazon rivers, causing "severe damage", Peru's defence ministry said.

From

The party has already cut overseas aid to fund an increase in defence spending.

From

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defederalizedefence in depth