as in protected
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Dissimilar Words
1
as in guarded
to drive danger or attack away from
a solemn oath to defend the mother country at any cost
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in justified
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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of defended
Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 23 Apr. 2026
Private firefighting outfits defended companies, utilities, and ultrarich enclaves while other parts of the city burned.
—Vann R. Newkirk Ii, The Atlantic, 10 Nov. 2025
Ringo recorded a defended pass and recovered the fumble Campbell forced.
—Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
In the first three games of the year, DeJean recorded 22 tackles and a defended pass.
—Evan Massey, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily defended causeway.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025
In 11 games for Wisconsin, Lucas recorded 18 tackles, one interception and three defended passes.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 9 Aug. 2025
Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2026
Months after its withering box-office performance, Costner defended his position.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Apr. 2026
At the time, she was allegedly thought of as the ringleader of the wives and defended his abuse.
—Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 10 Apr. 2026
His supporters have defended his closeness to Trump as pragmatism given the 2026 World Cup will be cohosted by the United States.
—Sanat Pai Raikar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Apr. 2026
White, the neonatologist who stopped enrolling patients in the study, defended the decision to conduct it.
—David Hilzenrath, Miami Herald, 9 Apr. 2026
Democrats defended Falconer on Tuesday, saying many lawmakers carry bills that have to do with their jobs outside of the Capitol.
—Mary Murphy, Twin Cities, 8 Apr. 2026
The opening goal from Doue owed to a deflection which was hard to mitigate for, and Liverpool defended the box significantly better than in recent weeks.
—Oliver Kay, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026
The Education Department has defended the effort, arguing taxpayers deserve transparency on how money is spent at institutions that receive federal funding.
—CBS News, 4 Apr. 2026
Adjective
The extended range allows aircraft to strike without entering heavily defended zones, reducing risk to pilots and platforms.
—Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 23 Apr. 2026
Private firefighting outfits defended companies, utilities, and ultrarich enclaves while other parts of the city burned.
—Vann R. Newkirk Ii, The Atlantic, 10 Nov. 2025
Ringo recorded a defended pass and recovered the fumble Campbell forced.
—Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
In the first three games of the year, DeJean recorded 22 tackles and a defended pass.
—Evan Massey, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily defended causeway.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025
In 11 games for Wisconsin, Lucas recorded 18 tackles, one interception and three defended passes.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 9 Aug. 2025
Verb
Jamahl Mosley‘s group successfully shared the ball by dishing out 33 assists and defended at a high level in spurts by scoring 28 points off 20 takeaways.
—Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2026
Months after its withering box-office performance, Costner defended his position.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Apr. 2026
At the time, she was allegedly thought of as the ringleader of the wives and defended his abuse.
—Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 10 Apr. 2026
His supporters have defended his closeness to Trump as pragmatism given the 2026 World Cup will be cohosted by the United States.
—Sanat Pai Raikar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Apr. 2026
White, the neonatologist who stopped enrolling patients in the study, defended the decision to conduct it.
—David Hilzenrath, Miami Herald, 9 Apr. 2026
Democrats defended Falconer on Tuesday, saying many lawmakers carry bills that have to do with their jobs outside of the Capitol.
—Mary Murphy, Twin Cities, 8 Apr. 2026
The opening goal from Doue owed to a deflection which was hard to mitigate for, and Liverpool defended the box significantly better than in recent weeks.
—Oliver Kay, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026
The Education Department has defended the effort, arguing taxpayers deserve transparency on how money is spent at institutions that receive federal funding.
—CBS News, 4 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defended
Adjective
-
If your income comes primarily from protected sources like Social Security or disability benefits, a court judgment may pose little immediate threat.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
The Surgeon General's office, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency are banned for 10 years from wielding legal, regulatory or economic pressure to persuade the platforms to remove protected speech.—
Jessica Guynn,
USA Today,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
McDaniels guarded him tighter than SaranWrap for 15 seconds, forcing an off-balance 3-pointer.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
24 Apr. 2026
-
The Denver center is just 12 for 32 in the series when being guarded by Gobert.—
Jace Frederick,
Twin Cities,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Senior Iranian leaders have repeatedly denied Israel’s legitimacy, predicted its destruction and framed that outcome as inevitable and justified.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Customs and Border Protection rules say that pepper balls and other projectiles should not be aimed at vulnerable areas such as the head or spine unless deadly force is justified.—
Rebekah Riess,
CNN Money,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Leon’s invention secured interest from Gaston himself, who came to see him in Venezuela in 1987.—
Simon Akam,
Vanity Fair,
2 Apr. 2026
-
In 2025 district attorneys filed charges in four cases referred to their offices and secured convictions in three.—
Joe Rubin,
Sacbee.com,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
John Deere signed a memorandum of understanding in 2023 that partially addressed those concerns, providing third parties with the technology to diagnose and repair, as long as its intellectual property was safeguarded.—
Caleb Jacobs,
The Drive,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Protect Civilian Infrastructure All sides should cease strikes on civilian targets and critical infrastructure, including energy facilities, desalination plants and safeguarded nuclear sites, in line with international humanitarian law.—
Micah McCartney,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Throughout the late couple’s six decades of ownership, the original mid-century design and craftsmanship were meticulously maintained.—
Sandra Barrera,
Oc Register,
25 Apr. 2026
-
The indictment says that in exchange for money, the soldiers maintained contact with Iranian intelligence operatives over a few months and carried out a range of tasks under their direction.—
Sean Nevin,
NBC news,
24 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Astronomers typically find such volatile ices only in very cold and shielded environments, such as dense molecular clouds, the envelopes surrounding young stellar objects, or the disks where planets form.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Mar. 2026
-
As is customary, terms of the settlement were not revealed and will likely remain shielded by non-disclosure and non-disparagement language.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The governor’s map was challenged in court, with several lower court rulings against it, but it was ultimately upheld by the Florida Supreme Court in July 2025.—
Jeffrey Schweers,
The Orlando Sentinel,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Again, if that case had been brought in a post-ACA 7 California state court, the district’s discriminatory policies would have been upheld.—
Alison Somin,
Oc Register,
10 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Defended.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defended. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
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