Defender

How to spell defender

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce defender

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does defender mean?

1. nounA person who protects someone or something from attack, harm, or criticism.
2. nounA player whose role is to stop the opposing team from scoring.

Defender in a sentence

• The lawyer became a fierce defender of her client's rights.

• The central defender blocked the striker's shot near the goal line.

• He was the last defender of the old castle when the siege began.

• She trained as a defender before switching to midfield.

Where does defender come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word traces back to the Latin verb defendere, which literally meant 'to ward off' or 'to strike away', built from the prefix de- ('off, away') and the verb fendere ('to strike or hit'). That same fendere root, glossed as 'to strike', also lurks inside 'offend' (to strike against) and 'fence', the act of fending off a blow. English took the noun through Old French defendeor during the medieval period, when a defender was literally one who beat back attackers in battle or argued on someone's behalf in a court. Over time the sense broadened from physical and legal protection to today's wide use, from sport to debate. The spelling stays comfortably regular, with the agent ending -er rather than the trickier -or that catches people on words like 'defensor' or 'advisor'.

How the word is built

• de- (off, away)
• fend (from Latin fendere, to strike or ward off)
• -er (agent suffix: one who does)