de ‧ fence S2 W1 BrE AmE British English , defense American English /dɪˈfens/ noun
[ Word Family: noun : DEFENCE/DEFENSE , ↑ defendant , ↑ defender , ↑ defensiveness ; adjective : DEFENCELESS/DEFENSELESS , ↑ defensible ≠ ↑ indefensible , ↑ defensive ; adverb : ↑ defensibly ≠ ↑ indefensibly , ↑ defensively ; verb : ↑ defend ]
1 . PROTECTION
a) [uncountable] the act of protecting something or someone from attack
defence of
In Britain, the defence of the country has historically been left to the navy.
a firm commitment to the defense of human rights
The first line of defence is a smoke detector.
b) [countable] something that can be used to protect something or someone from attack:
The area’s flood defences need repair.
defence against
The immune system is the body’s defence against infection.
⇨ ↑ self-defence
2 . MILITARY
a) [uncountable] all the systems, people, materials etc that a country uses to protect itself from attack:
calls for a national debate on defence
the Defense Department
b) defences British English , defenses American English [plural] all the armies, weapons, structures etc that are available to defend a place:
The invading army easily overcame the town’s defences.
3 . AGAINST CRITICISM [uncountable and countable] something that you say or do in order to support someone or something that is being criticized
in sb’s/sth’s defence
Jean wrote a letter to the paper in Angela’s defense.
defence of
a philosophical defence of nationalism
come/leap to sb’s defence
Evelyn Waugh came to Wilson’s defence and acknowledged the brilliance of the book’s themes.
4 . IN A LAW COURT
a) [countable] the things that are said in a court of law to prove that someone is not guilty of a crime:
Major has a good defence and believes he will win the case.
a defence lawyer
b) the defence all the lawyers who try to prove in a court of law that someone is not guilty of a crime:
The defense called only one witness.
⇨ ↑ prosecution (2)
5 . EMOTIONS [countable] something you do or a way of behaving that prevents you from seeming weak or being hurt by others:
Liz dropped her defences and began to relax.
6 . SPORT [countable] British English the players in a game whose main job is to try to prevent the other team from getting points OPP offense
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 2)
■ defence + NOUN
▪ a defence force (=group of soldiers, pilots etc trained to defend a country)
The country's defence forces are on standby in case of an attack.
▪ a defence system (=a system of people, organizations etc to defend a country)
Is the national defence system adequate?
▪ a defence policy
Ministers in Brussels have been discussing a possible European defence policy.
▪ defence spending/expenditure
There were plans to cut defence spending by one billion pounds.
▪ the defence budget (=amount of money a government makes available for defence)
They have called for the defence budget to be increased.
▪ the Defence Department (=part of the government dealing with defence)
This is secret information, known only to the Defence Department.
▪ the Defence Secretary (=person in a government in charge of defence)
The Defence Secretary is under pressure to resign.