defendable

adjective

Definition of defendablenext
1
as in defended
capable of being defended against physical attack that nation has long insisted on having borders that it regards as defendable

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in justifiable
capable of being defended with good reasoning against verbal attack your thesis had better be defendable for the attacks are going to be withering

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of defendable For months the university has been briefing journalists that its appointment system is rigorous and defendable, and that the campaign was targeted against a Black academic because of his race. — Rupert Neate, CNN Money, 16 Aug. 2026 Even if maritime regulators demanded shippers purchase more defendable vessels, the crews aboard are unready for the challenge. — Craig Hooper, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026 The safe, defendable choice wasn’t necessarily the right one though. — Los Angeles Times, 31 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defendable
  1. defended
  2. justifiable
  3. defensible
  4. protected
  5. secured
  6. secure
Adjective
  • The city is part of Ukraine’s Fortress Belt, a series of heavily defended cities that Russia must overcome to advance farther into the region.
    — Vikram Mittal, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
  • That additional space supports higher burnout velocity and helps expand the interceptor’s defended area.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of defended
Adjective
  • The valuation of Fernandez is entirely justifiable within the context of the huge fees paid by several Premier League clubs, and specifically City, for high-level central midfielders this summer.
    — Liam Twomey, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Having lost its attempt to invalidate the FCC’s process for issuing financial penalties, Verizon now wants another chance to argue that the fine itself wasn’t legally justifiable.
    — Jon Brodkin, ArsTechnica, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of justifiable
Adjective
  • The market opportunity was compelling, and the financial projections were defensible.
    — Albana Vrioni, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Unlike tobacco, a static product with no real defensible qualities outside of recreation, consumer technology is ever evolving, and the lines between harmfully addictive and beneficial to society can be extremely blurry.
    — Jonathan Vanian, CNBC, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of defensible
Adjective
  • The main Wekiva River was designated by Congress in 2000 as a protected National Wild and Scenic River.
    — Martin E. Comas, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Aug. 2026
  • This includes Ukraine, where the Russian language recently lost protected status.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of protected
Adjective
  • In order to keep most of the seats available for the public, Fitzgerald limited how many of the defendants’ family members would get secured seats to 15 people.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Alo continues to expand rapidly after its big yacht summer; Vuori has surpassed its goal of 100-plus stores by the end of 2026; and the UK’s Adanola secured investment from Story3 Capital, valuing the business at $530 million last year.
    — Lucy Maguire, Vogue, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of secured
Adjective
  • The department later confirmed that the area was secure and that no further threat to the public remained.
    — Angel Saunders, PEOPLE, 3 Sep. 2026
  • The Air Force expects Sentinel to provide a more effective, safe and secure ICBM capability well into the 2070s.
    — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of secure

Browse Nearby Words

defend
defendable
defendant
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Defendable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defendable. Accessed 7 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gist

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All