guard against

verb

guarded against; guarding against; guards against

: to try to keep (something) from happening

Clean the wound to guard against infection.

That's the sort of thinking we have to guard against.

Examples of guard against in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Clear rules can preserve those responsibilities while guarding against the use of research funds as political rewards or punishments. — Carole Labonne, Washington Post, 8 Nov. 2026

Mayoral candidates need a minimum of 12,500 valid signatures, but most gather way more than that to guard against petition challenges knocking them below the threshold. — Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 2 Nov. 2026

To guard against birds, the lizards use the sharp horns on the back of their heads to stab at predators that try to seize them in their beaks. — Rj MacKenzie, Popular Science, 1 Nov. 2026

That would guard against the possibility that right-wing presidential candidate Marine Le Pen might win the election and influence the choice. — ABC News, 29 Oct. 2026

Rhymes for guard against

• recommenced
• recompensed
• commenced
• condensed
• dispensed
• expensed
• incensed
• unfenced
• fenced
• sensed
• tensed