fend off
phrasal verb
fended off; fending off; fends off
: to defend oneself against (someone or something)
They succeeded in fending off the attack/attackers.
They have had to fend off allegations of voter fraud.
Examples of fend off in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Male bass stay close by to fend off the mothers and other predators, but this behavior lends to opportunistic fishing around cover.
—
Shaye Baker, Field & Stream, 1 May 2024
This physical reaction is commonly associated with a fear response in the animal kingdom — puffing up fur, for example, to fend off predators or keep warm.
—Katie Lauer, The Mercury News, 30 Apr. 2024
Alex Garland’s dystopian political action film Civil War about an America torn apart appears to be fending off new vampire pic Abigail at the box office.
—Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Apr. 2024
Still, supporters had to fend off opposition from landlord groups and legislative Republicans, as well as a late attempt by some senate Democrats to hijack the bill.
—Seth Klamann, The Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2024
Crane criticized the bill, which never reached the House floor, over its provision of military funding for Ukraine as that country aims to fend off Russia’s invasion.
—Laura Gersony, The Arizona Republic, 17 Apr. 2024
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Europe has struggled to fend off influence operations by Moscow aimed at weakening Western unity and resolve.
—Erika Solomon, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2024
TikTok’s project to stop sharing user data with ByteDance was part of an effort to fend off regulators.
—Alexandra Sternlicht, Fortune, 15 Apr. 2024
In recent years, Echo Heights residents fended off multiple proposals to construct an industrial facility on the farmland right across the street.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2024
Shaye Baker, Field & Stream, 1 May 2024
This physical reaction is commonly associated with a fear response in the animal kingdom — puffing up fur, for example, to fend off predators or keep warm.
—Katie Lauer, The Mercury News, 30 Apr. 2024
Alex Garland’s dystopian political action film Civil War about an America torn apart appears to be fending off new vampire pic Abigail at the box office.
—Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Apr. 2024
Still, supporters had to fend off opposition from landlord groups and legislative Republicans, as well as a late attempt by some senate Democrats to hijack the bill.
—Seth Klamann, The Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2024
Crane criticized the bill, which never reached the House floor, over its provision of military funding for Ukraine as that country aims to fend off Russia’s invasion.
—Laura Gersony, The Arizona Republic, 17 Apr. 2024
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Europe has struggled to fend off influence operations by Moscow aimed at weakening Western unity and resolve.
—Erika Solomon, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2024
TikTok’s project to stop sharing user data with ByteDance was part of an effort to fend off regulators.
—Alexandra Sternlicht, Fortune, 15 Apr. 2024
In recent years, Echo Heights residents fended off multiple proposals to construct an industrial facility on the farmland right across the street.
—Jaime Moore-Carrillo, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fend off.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near fend off
Cite this Entry
“Fend off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fend%20off. Accessed 7 May. 2024.
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