1
as in protecting
to drive danger or attack away from
a solemn oath to defend the mother country at any cost
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in justifying
to continue to declare to be true or proper despite opposition or objections
she will pigheadedly defend any claim regardless of all evidence to the contrary
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of defending
Soliman was called to an asylum hearing in February, a month into the new administration, for a last shot at defending his eligibility.
—
Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Sep. 2025
Those included defending Novo's leadership in diabetes and obesity treatment, fostering a high performance culture and realigning the company's cost base and driving efficiencies.
—Karen Gilchrist,katrina Bishop, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2025
Who's challenging and who's defending the law?
—Taylor Seely, AZCentral.com, 9 Sep. 2025
The Cowboys also weren’t going to deal Parsons within the division, and especially not to the defending Super Bowl champions.
—Jon MacHota, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
They will be joined by defending champion Billy Horschel, who chose Wentworth to make his return after four months out due to injury.
—Julio Cesar Valdera Morales, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Google responded in December 2023, defending its actions.
—Emma Woollacott, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
The law currently gives prosecutors too much leverage in the courtroom and pressures defendants to take a plea deal over defending themselves at trial, Preston said.
—Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 3 Sep. 2025
There will be plenty of fanfare surrounding the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles when the NFL kicks off its 106th season.
—Jim Reineking, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2025
Hannah Allam, ProPublica, 10 Sep. 2025
Those included defending Novo's leadership in diabetes and obesity treatment, fostering a high performance culture and realigning the company's cost base and driving efficiencies.
—Karen Gilchrist,katrina Bishop, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2025
Who's challenging and who's defending the law?
—Taylor Seely, AZCentral.com, 9 Sep. 2025
The Cowboys also weren’t going to deal Parsons within the division, and especially not to the defending Super Bowl champions.
—Jon MacHota, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
They will be joined by defending champion Billy Horschel, who chose Wentworth to make his return after four months out due to injury.
—Julio Cesar Valdera Morales, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Google responded in December 2023, defending its actions.
—Emma Woollacott, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
The law currently gives prosecutors too much leverage in the courtroom and pressures defendants to take a plea deal over defending themselves at trial, Preston said.
—Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 3 Sep. 2025
There will be plenty of fanfare surrounding the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles when the NFL kicks off its 106th season.
—Jim Reineking, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defending
Verb
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While many executives are pausing on big hires or deferring large projects, Dave Anderson, Founder of TSC Security, argues that protecting your company’s digital assets should not be placed on the back burner.—
Matt Emma,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
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Indiana University is the worst public university in the country for fostering and protecting free speech on campus, according to a national First Amendment organization that ranks universities annually.—
Cate Charron,
IndyStar,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Pentagon hasn't released information publicly justifying the destruction of the boat.—
Bart Jansen,
USA Today,
7 Sep. 2025
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Bob felt that Clark Gilmer was 'justifying the harm' done to trans people in her comments about King.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Advertisement Advertisement Yet, the decades-long effort to secure passage of the VRA offers pragmatic wisdom for safeguarding—and even extending—the gains enshrined by the law.—
Time,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
-
From tracking urban air quality to safeguarding water systems and observing wildlife in the planet’s most remote regions, reliable data is the cornerstone of sustainable action.—
Michael De Nil,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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This kind of continuous monitoring is critical for developing and maintaining climate models.—
Yasemin Saplakoglu,
Quanta Magazine,
15 Sep. 2025
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For many companies, the greatest challenge isn't significant changes themselves, but weathering several simultaneously while maintaining business as usual.—
James Manto,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The protective father also held his hands back, guarding his son while placing the back of his head on Jack’s stomach.—
Charna Flam,
PEOPLE,
12 Sep. 2025
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On Tuesday, Charles hit 3-of-7 of her field goal attempts and hit all five of her free throws while taking on the assignment of guarding Storm sharpshooter Gabby Williams.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In other words, the leaders need to be the leaders while upholding the standards set forth by the coaching staff – a staff that had offseason turnover limited to one full-timer – while educating and guiding the younger players.—
Tom Layberger,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
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Earlier this year, Barrett and Chief Justice John Roberts, who is also conservative, joined liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson in a ruling upholding a lower court order that unfroze $2 billion in foreign aid.—
Jenna Sundel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Raki McGregor, who also serves as the board chair of Mecklenburg County’s workforce development board Charlotte Works, recently made waves by publicly supporting candidates for CMS school board before his tenure as a CMS consultant was up.—
Rebecca Noel,
Charlotte Observer,
10 Sep. 2025
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Among the supporting evidence filed by the government are three academic reports by scholars with deep knowledge of Islamic charities in Egypt.—
Hannah Allam,
ProPublica,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Defending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defending. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
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