DEFENSE Synonyms: 53 Similar and Opposite Words

defense

noun

di-ˈfen(t)s

Definition of defense

as in ammunition

means or method of defending thorns are a rose's defense against grazing animals

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in excuse

an explanation that frees one from fault or blame there's absolutely no defense for your actions

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 defense Much of the attention in the offseason was paid to Baylor landing Florida transfer quarterback DJ Lagway, but the true key to Baylor’s hot start has been a defense that hasn’t allowed more than 19 points in a game this season. — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Oct. 2026 That’s more than spending on energy, construction, computers, defense, or the internet, the WSJ noted. — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 5 Oct. 2026 But observers expect the participation would be limited to protecting Saudi Arabia’s borders from ground assault by the Houthis or providing air-defense equipment against ballistic missiles and drones. — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026 That statistic is also not about the quarterback but rather the fact defenses knew the quarterback is the only place the Chiefs could turn. — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 5 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for defense

Recent Examples of Synonyms for defense

Noun

The polling failure will serve to give further ammunition to the Brazilian right and the Bolsonaro camp, which have long alleged that the nation's leading pollsters turn in work biased in favor of Lula and his Workers Party.

— David Unsworth, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026
The robots deliver food, medicine and ammunition to frontline.

— Greg Myre, NPR, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of ammunition

Noun

But that cannot be used as an excuse because the Dolphins scored just 13 points in each of the games that Achane finished.

— Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 5 Oct. 2026
Livia’s unease informs her skepticism of politics; in linking the two, Kingsolver conflates class and culture, using the former as an excuse for what really just seems to be Livia’s constitutional conservatism.

— Sam Worley, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of excuse

Noun

The series follows devoted single mother Anna (Haggard) and her headstrong teenage daughter Maya (Ramsey), as they are forced into witness protection to escape danger.

— Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2026
In an interview with CNBC Sport on September 10 in Australia, Commissioner Roger Goodell emphasized the league wants stronger protections before entertaining the possibility of a tie up with the new markets.

— Contessa Brewer, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of protection

Noun

Just a few months later, in February 2003—a month before the invasion—Secretary of State Colin Powell presented a dramatic case to the United Nations, citing mobile weapons labs and hidden stockpiles of WMDs as justification for war.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Oct. 2026
However, a federal judge temporarily restored the outlets’ access and said the administration had offered little support for its national-security justification.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of justification

Noun

Therapists begin facials with face-scanning wands and other probes, to measure your lipid shield, pigmentation, hydration and elasticity, and then cater their approach to the precise needs of your skin in that moment.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026
In Paris, tear gas filled the air, and trash cans, school desks and chairs were set alight as riot police with shields and batons clashed with some demonstrators.

— Melissa Bell, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of shield

Noun

The reason is that sellers will give up some money to avoid the risk that a buyer’s financing falls through.

— Bilin Lin, Fortune, 6 Oct. 2026
Borisov’s brainy, tender, deeply contemplative performance lends an anchoring humanity to a film that might otherwise have curdled into sourness and despair — though there’s plenty of reason for that.

— David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of reason

Noun

Meanwhile, some safeguards were easy to turn off or circumvent.

— Ella Chakarian, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
In 2023, Anthropic published the first version of its Responsible Scaling Policy, a document that laid out precise thresholds for when a model’s capabilities became dangerous enough to require additional safeguards.

— Kevin Roose, Vanity Fair, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of safeguard

Noun

Ortega had additionally been sentenced, in September 2025, for in-prison possession and manufacture of a deadly weapon, according to the news release.

— Michael McGough, Sacbee.com, 7 Oct. 2026
The widespread use of arrests, tear gas and riot-control weapons against teenagers is fueling defiance and angering some parents and teachers.

— NICOLAS GARRIGA, Arkansas Online, 7 Oct. 2026