as in guardian
someone that protects
one of the traditional roles of an older brother is that of schoolyard defender
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of defender
Courage defender Felicitas Rauch was handed a straight red card in second half stoppage time for violent conduct on Haley Hopkins.
—
ABC News, 2 May 2026
Weaving into the attacking zone on a four-on-two, Müller switched lanes from the outside and collected a pass from Eldridge while splitting a pair of Charge defenders.
—Jason Cooke, Boston Herald, 1 May 2026
But the two best defenders in the series were the last men standing.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 1 May 2026
One exception is Minnesota Wild defender Jake Middleton, and to an even greater extent, his brother, Colorado Avalanche farmhand Keaton Middleton.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 1 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for defender
ABC News, 2 May 2026
Weaving into the attacking zone on a four-on-two, Müller switched lanes from the outside and collected a pass from Eldridge while splitting a pair of Charge defenders.
—Jason Cooke, Boston Herald, 1 May 2026
But the two best defenders in the series were the last men standing.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 1 May 2026
One exception is Minnesota Wild defender Jake Middleton, and to an even greater extent, his brother, Colorado Avalanche farmhand Keaton Middleton.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 1 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for defender
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defender
Noun
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Police said the suspect was detained and used a gun owned by a legal guardian.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
6 May 2026
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Entrants must be in grades 5-12; a parent/guardian must submit for students aged 12 and younger.—
Keith Sharon,
USA Today,
4 May 2026
Noun
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The union, which represents animal care specialists, patrol officers, custodians, groundskeepers, patrol officers, aides and seasonal workers, said the zoo's last contract offer would have taken away their health care plan without providing a comparable alternative.—
Sara Tenenbaum,
CBS News,
6 May 2026
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The report scored 542 tokenized assets on a scale from wrapper, where a token represents a claim on an offchain asset held by a custodian, to native, where issuance, redemption, and custody all happen fully onchain.—
Jack Kubinec,
Fortune,
6 May 2026
Noun
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Perry says her mother was also a fierce, if deeply flawed, protector, who was forced to become the sole provider as Perry’s father squandered his earnings.—
Pamela Chelin,
Los Angeles Times,
7 May 2026
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In his most high-profile dispute, Valdez hit his own catcher, César Salazar, in the chest protector after a cross-up that some viewed as intentional.—
Cody Stavenhagen,
New York Times,
6 May 2026
Noun
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On almost any other night, being without Town’s playmaking or Robinson’s rim protection and rebounding dominance would tank the Knicks.—
Fiifi Frimpong,
New York Daily News,
5 May 2026
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Which means all the due process protections afforded to defendants in criminal courts do not necessarily apply to non-citizens facing deportation.—
Sean Emery,
Oc Register,
4 May 2026
Noun
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The money, hidden in furniture, was never reported through standard police channels, prompting the former intelligence chief in 2022 to file a criminal complaint alleging a cover-up, money laundering, and unlawful use of Ramaphosa’s bodyguards to track down suspects.—
Tiisetso Motsoeneng,
semafor.com,
8 May 2026
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Chan, surrounded by bodyguards, was unreachable.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
8 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Defender.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defender. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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