zone defense

noun

: a system of defense (as in basketball or football) in which each player guards an assigned area rather than a specified opponent

Examples of zone defense in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Bowles continues to run the defense himself, but the personnel around him changed considerably after a difficult 2025 season in which the red-zone defense ranked last in the NFL. — Jenny Catlin, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Italy then switched to a zone defense and went on a 16-7 spurt to close the half down 30-24. — ABC News, 6 Sep. 2026

Joseph’s schemes can muddle the data, because his zone defense often comes with man-to-man principles. — Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 25 Aug. 2026

The Sparks had difficulty solving problems caused by the Mercury’s zone defense. — Jordan Puente, Los Angeles Times, 12 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1927, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for zone defense

• hyperintense
• antisense
• commonsense
• effulgence
• frankincense
• ninepence
• nondefense
• recommence
• recompence
• recompense
• cense
• dense