defender
- 01 A2 Elementary
a player in a game like football whose main job is to stop the other team from scoring goals.
a player in a team sport whose primary tactical role is to prevent the opposing side from scoring.
Simple“The defender kicked the ball away just before the striker could take a shot.”
In context“The team's defensive strategy relied on the central defender's ability to anticipate the opponent's passes and intercept them before they reached the penalty area.”
- 02 B1 Intermediate
someone who protects a person, a place, or an idea from being attacked or hurt.
one who protects or guards a person, entity, or abstract principle against physical attack or verbal criticism.
Simple“She has always been a strong defender of animal rights in her community.”
In context“Throughout his political career, he remained a staunch defender of free speech, even when the opinions being expressed were deeply unpopular.”
- 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
a lawyer who represents a person accused of a crime in court.
a legal advocate who represents a defendant in criminal or civil proceedings, most commonly seen in the term 'public defender'.
Simple“The public defender met with his client to prepare for the trial next week.”
In context“The court appointed a public defender to the case after the accused demonstrated that they could not afford private legal representation.”
Synonymsdefense attorneycounselAntonyms
“This usually involves one or two defenders inside the penalty area, along with the goalkeeper.”
“He did, though, draw defenders and present a physical presence up front, and that will be missed.”
From Middle English defender, deffender, defendere, defendour, defendoure, partly from Anglo-Norman defendour, from Old French defendëor; partly from Middle English defenden + -ere, equivalent to defend + -er.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.