fend off

phrasal verb

fended off; fending off; fends off

: to defend oneself against (someone or something)

They succeeded in fending off the attack/attackers.

They have had to fend off allegations of voter fraud.

Examples of fend off in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The country is now being led by the former Vice-President, Delcy Rodríguez, who is trying to appease Trump and fend off internal challenges, as our foreign correspondent Jon Lee Anderson explains on the latest episode of the Political Scene podcast. —Ian Crouch, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026

In addition to softening skin, tocopherol fends off free radicals found in the environment, the likes of which contribute to sunspots, sagging, and other signs of aging. —Sophie Wirt, InStyle, 5 Jan. 2026

Knueppel has been an absolute dream on and off the court and has, for the most part, fended off injury in his first season in the NBA. —Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 31 Dec. 2025

Martin Necas and Brock Nelson scored during one strong surge late in the second period, and the defensive work remained strong as the Avs fended off the Los Angeles Kings, 5-2, on Monday night at Ball Arena. —Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 30 Dec. 2025

Rhymes for fend off

• ashraf
• checkoff
• cutoff
• falloff
• handoff
• kickoff
• layoff
• liftoff
• markoff
• markov
• payoff
• playoff