defender

noun

de·​fend·​er di-ˈfen-dər 

1

: one that defends

2

: a player in a sport (such as football) assigned to a defensive position

Synonyms of defender

• guardian
• custodian
• protector
• protection
• bodyguard

Examples of defender in a Sentence

one of the traditional roles of an older brother is that of schoolyard defender

Recent Examples on the Web

Prescott was blitzed and threw the ball immediately to running back Javonte Williams, who wasn’t ready for a Cardinals defender to hit him right away. —Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 4 Nov. 2025

Alonso is not an elite defender, and signing an aging power-hitter may not align with Stearns' goals. —Aaliyan Mohammed, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025

Bears quarterback Caleb Williams hit tight end Colston Loveland with a pass and the tight end barely evaded two Bengals defenders, who hit each other instead of Loveland. —Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 3 Nov. 2025

Mahomes completed less than 50 percent of his passes, with the Bills getting pressure on him all game long, all while sporting defenders who were not in the starting lineup for much of the season. —The Athletic Nfl Staff, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English defendour, defender, borrowed from Anglo-French defendour, defendur, from defend-, stem of defendre "to defend" + -our, -ur -or entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing defender

• public defender

Rhymes for defender

• bartender
• contender
• engender
• extender
• offender
• pretender
• provender
• surrender
• suspender
• transgender
• bender
• blender

Kids Definition

defender

noun

de·​fend·​er -ˈfen-dər 

1

: one that defends

2

: a player in a sport (as football) who plays a defensive position

Legal Definition

defender

noun

de·​fend·​er

: a lawyer who represents defendants

especially : public defender