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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of defended
Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 11 Mar. 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
David Hilzenrath, USA Today, 29 Mar. 2026
George Piedra, the attorney representing the property owner, defended the relocation package.
—Ivan Taylor, CBS News, 27 Mar. 2026
Lee aggressively defended his work and disputed the allegations in both cases.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 27 Mar. 2026
Then, the Mexican lost the belt in 2024 to Shevchenko, who successfully defended her title twice last year.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 27 Mar. 2026
People on both sides defended these ideas around the world.
—Quico Toro, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026
Republicans defended the measure as a way to hold prosecutors more accountable.
—Riley Bunch, AJC.com, 27 Mar. 2026
Texas junior Rex Maurer defended his title in the 400-yard individual medley and the Longhorns held the team lead after Day 2 of the competition.
—Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 26 Mar. 2026
Houston drained seven threes in that decisive fourth-quarter run; a couple of them were tightly defended but Rockets shooters had too much airspace on others.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 22 Mar. 2026
Adjective
Such endurance is central to the aircraft’s role in long-range deterrence operations and potential missions in heavily defended regions.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 11 Mar. 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
White, the neonatologist who stopped enrolling patients in the study, defended the decision to conduct it.
—David Hilzenrath, USA Today, 29 Mar. 2026
George Piedra, the attorney representing the property owner, defended the relocation package.
—Ivan Taylor, CBS News, 27 Mar. 2026
Lee aggressively defended his work and disputed the allegations in both cases.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 27 Mar. 2026
Then, the Mexican lost the belt in 2024 to Shevchenko, who successfully defended her title twice last year.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 27 Mar. 2026
People on both sides defended these ideas around the world.
—Quico Toro, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026
Republicans defended the measure as a way to hold prosecutors more accountable.
—Riley Bunch, AJC.com, 27 Mar. 2026
Texas junior Rex Maurer defended his title in the 400-yard individual medley and the Longhorns held the team lead after Day 2 of the competition.
—Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 26 Mar. 2026
Houston drained seven threes in that decisive fourth-quarter run; a couple of them were tightly defended but Rockets shooters had too much airspace on others.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 22 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defended
Adjective
-
The anti-discrimination law, which adds family or relationship structure as a protected class in the city alongside race, religion, gender and other categories, was finalized Monday and will go into effect in mid-April.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Sweeney did concede that the uncertainty around two of the four first-round picks (the Toronto pick this year is top-5 protected and the Florida pick next year is top-10 protected) added to the reticence to move any of them.—
Steve Conroy,
Boston Herald,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Adebayo found a rhythm in the second half, scoring 15 points in the final two quarters while being guarded by reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Recently, when Gonzalez maimed three fingers in a firework accident and spent weeks in the hospital, his neighbors house-sat and guarded his belongings.—
Grant Stringer,
Mercury News,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But defense attorneys argued the protests weren’t as peaceful as plaintiffs’ attorneys portrayed, that officers’ actions were justified, and that the individual officers named in the suit should be entitled to public official immunity and dismissed from the lawsuit.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Mar. 2026
-
McDonnell wrote in a report made public Thursday that two officers were justified in using deadly force against Lauren, 52, who pointed a gun and fired at officers during a standoff in the backyard of her Eagle Rock home in April.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
For some, secured cards — where consumers put down a security deposit that functions like a credit limit on a regular credit card — could be a useful option to build a credit history without the same eligibility requirements as unsecured credit cards, Chen says.—
Kamaron McNair,
CNBC,
28 Mar. 2026
-
That’s also how Trump secured funding for immigration enforcement.—
W. James Antle III,
The Washington Examiner,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The Panthers have safeguarded the depth at the position by bringing back Franks, a special teams ace, and Mitchell.—
Mike Kaye
March 26,
Charlotte Observer,
26 Mar. 2026
-
That framework should also ensure that children are protected, censorship is prevented, copyrights are respected, and communities are safeguarded.—
Arpan Lobo,
Freep.com,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Iran, meanwhile, has maintained control over the Strait of Hormuz, raising energy prices globally.—
Bart Jansen,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
-
San Diego State stormed back in the second, but KU maintained a 45-43 lead at halftime.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
27 Mar. 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
-
Her ruling — finding that the plaintiffs were likely to succeed on the merits — was upheld in a 2-1 decision by a federal appeals court.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
-
In February 2026, the Minnesota Supreme Court upheld Nick's convictions.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Defended.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defended. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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