defensive
adjective · noun
Simple meaning
Intended or appropriate for defending against or deterring aggression or attack.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
dihfehnsivSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
dɪˈfɛnsɪv
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
chiefly sports
Pertaining to defense, as opposed to attack.
Intended or appropriate for defending against or deterring aggression or attack
Intended for defence; protective.
In a state or posture of defense.
Displaying an inordinate sensitivity to criticism or intrusion; oversensitive; thin-skinned.
Performed so as to minimise risk.
noun
A means, attitude or position of defense.
An attitude of defensiveness (especially in the phrase `on the defensive')
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Pertaining to defense, as opposed to attack.
Used this way, defensive is a reasonably familiar word with a faintly unfavourable edge. This is a sporting use: familiar to anyone who follows the game, and puzzling to anyone who does not.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Critical or judgemental
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Sports
- News/reporting
- Everyday conversation
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use defensive
- “He became very defensive when asked about his mistakes.”
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
In an apologetic and defensive manner.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
An attitude of defensiveness (especially in the phrase `on the defensive').
Military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies.
A structure used to defend against attack.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: means or attitude or position of defense
Antonyms
Sense: pertaining to defense or as opposed to attack
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.