defense: meaning and words from its letters
7 letters · 11 letter points · starts with D · ends with E
Meaning of defense
noun
- US, countable, uncountable
The action of defending or protecting from attack, danger, or injury.
- US, countable, uncountable
Anything employed to oppose attack(s). A strategy and tactics employed to prevent the other team from scoring; contrasted with offense.
- US, countable, uncountable
Anything employed to oppose attack(s). The portion of a team dedicated to preventing the other team from scoring; contrasted with offense.
- US, countable, uncountable
An argument in support or justification of something.
Example: to come to someone's defense
Listed forms: defenses, defence.
Source: Wiktionary — defense.
verb
- US
To employ defensive tactics (so as to block).
Listed forms: defenses, defensing, defensed, defence.
Source: Wiktionary — defense.
verb
- US, archaic
To furnish with defenses; to defend, protect.
Listed forms: defenses, defensing, defensed, defence.
Source: Wiktionary — defense.
Adapted from Wiktionary contributors via Kaikki.org. Selected senses and forms; quotations omitted. Definition text is CC BY-SA 4.0.
Synonyms by meaning
Words are grouped by sense, so they are not necessarily interchangeable in every context. Search synonyms for defense.
noun
(military) military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies
- defence
- defensive measure
noun
protection from harm
noun
(sports) the team that is trying to prevent the other team from scoring
- defence
- defending team
noun
the justification for some act or belief
Open English WordNet Team, 2025, derived from Princeton University WordNet; selected synonym groups under CC BY 4.0. Source · OEWN notice · Princeton notice.
Is defense in our word lists?
| Word list | Status |
|---|---|
| American English | Found |
| British English | Not found |
| Extended English | Found |
These are spelling-list matches, not official game validity checks. Check the rules and dictionary used by your game.
Letter-value score of defense
D(2) + E(1) + F(4) + E(1) + N(1) + S(1) + E(1) = 11 points.
This is a sum of letter values without board bonuses or word multipliers. A blank tile is worth zero: subtract the value of each letter supplied by a blank. The score does not establish game validity. Full letter-value table.
Anagrams of defense
0 other standard-list words use exactly these letters, including repeated letters.
No other single-word anagram was found in our standard list.
Shorter words from defense
33 shorter standard-list words can be made using no letter more often than it occurs in defense. Showing up to 24, longest first.