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

Alex Garland’s dystopian political action film Civil War about an America torn apart appears to be fending off new vampire pic Abigail at the box office. —Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Apr. 2024

Still, supporters had to fend off opposition from landlord groups and legislative Republicans, as well as a late attempt by some senate Democrats to hijack the bill. —Seth Klamann, The Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2024

Crane criticized the bill, which never reached the House floor, over its provision of military funding for Ukraine as that country aims to fend off Russia’s invasion. —Laura Gersony, The Arizona Republic, 17 Apr. 2024

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Europe has struggled to fend off influence operations by Moscow aimed at weakening Western unity and resolve. —Erika Solomon, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2024

TikTok’s project to stop sharing user data with ByteDance was part of an effort to fend off regulators. —Alexandra Sternlicht, Fortune, 15 Apr. 2024

In recent years, Echo Heights residents fended off multiple proposals to construct an industrial facility on the farmland right across the street. —Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2024

The Trump campaign's response The Trump campaign notes that Biden hasn't had to spend money fending off primary challengers, like Trump has. —Franco Ordoñez, NPR, 29 Mar. 2024

One plate also depicts St. George fending off a dragon in order to rescue a princess. —Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 28 Mar. 2024