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defense has 20 distinct synonyms spread across 12 of its 12 senses. Each sense below keeps its own list, because a synonym belongs to a meaning and not to a word: swapping one sense's substitute into another sense's sentence is how a thesaurus makes writing worse. Its 2 recorded opposites are offense, prosecution.
Counts are distinct word forms across every sense. A synonym that appears under three senses is counted once here and shown three times below, under each sense it belongs to.
(military) military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies
“they died in the defense of Stalingrad”
protection from harm
“sanitation is the best defense against disease”
(sports) the team that is trying to prevent the other team from scoring
“his teams are always good on defense”
the justification for some act or belief
“he offered a persuasive defense of the theory”
(psychiatry) an unconscious process that tries to reduce the anxiety associated with instinctive desires
the federal department responsible for safeguarding national security of the United States; created in 1947
the defendant and his legal advisors collectively
“the defense called for a mistrial”
the speech act of answering an attack on your assertions
“his refutation of the charges was short and persuasive”
an organization of defenders that provides resistance against attack
“he joined the defense against invasion”
a structure used to defend against attack
“the artillery battered down the defenses”
a defendant's answer or plea denying the truth of the charges against him
“he gave evidence for the defense”
the act of defending someone or something against attack or injury
“a good boxer needs a good defense”
Synonyms, antonyms and the broader and narrower relations for defense come from Princeton University’s WordNet. Full sources and licences.