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Protect

[pruh-tekt]

Example Sentences Origin

verb (used with object)

to defend or guard from attack, invasion, loss, annoyance, insult, etc.; cover or shield from injury or danger.

Economics. to guard (the industry or an industry of a nation) from foreign competition by imposing import duties.

to provide funds for the payment of (a draft, note, etc.).

verb (used without object)

to provide, or be capable of providing, protection: a floor wax that protects as well as shines.

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Protect is one of our favorite verbs.

So is fletcherise. Does it mean:

to run away hurriedly; flee.

to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly.

LEARN MORE FUN, UNUSUAL VERBS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

Origin:
1520–30; < Latin prōtēctus, past participle of prōtegere to cover in front, equivalent to prō- pro-¹ + teg-, stem of tegere to cover (akin to toga, thatch) + -tus past participle suffix

Related forms

pro·tect·i·ble, pro·tect·a·ble, adjective

pro·tect·i·bil·i·ty, pro·tect·a·bil·i·ty, noun

o·ver·pro·tect, verb (used with object)

qua·si-pro·tect·ed, adjective

sem·i·pro·tect·ed, adjective

EXPAND

un·pro·tect·a·ble, adjective

un·pro·tect·ed, adjective

well-pro·tect·ed, adjective

COLLAPSE

Synonyms
1. screen, shelter. See defend.

Antonyms
1. attack.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To Protect

Example Sentences

The legal reason for the age limit is to protect children's privacy.

Last month, the department sent a letter to colleges urging them to take steps to protect the student-aid programs.

Hyperactive immune systems may protect against cancer.

EXPAND

The legal reason for the age limit is to protect children's privacy.

Last month, the department sent a letter to colleges urging them to take steps to protect the student-aid programs.

Hyperactive immune systems may protect against cancer.

Provide two or three alternatives that could help to protect terrestrial or marine ecosystems.

Our government here exists to protect our rights, not grant them.

Birds produce chemicals that they spread over their feathers to protect themselves from pathogens.

Simple project to protect tender plants in winter.

It'll protect you from injuries, monitor your vitals and even harvest your energy.

But new efforts to protect marine creatures have gained surprising support from researchers, regulators, engineers and fishermen.

The debate centered on whether, and how, law schools could protect academic freedom without a tenure system.

The best way to protect them would be to legalise and regulate the industry.

Many have joined the critical fight to protect big cats.

Those with the long form of the promoter were much more willing to approve of harming one person to protect five.

They then poured molten lead over the joints to cushion them from seismic shocks and protect the clamps from corrosion.

Floating row covers help protect plants from cold temperatures.

The longevity drug resveratrol may also protect against radiation damage.

But whether there will soon be new adult-size clams to protect is still a matter of conjecture.

He says he and others on the campus want to protect its small-college feel.

The government currently subsidises the interest payments to private lenders and guarantees loans to protect against default.

Local people team up to protect their natural and cultural heritage and encourage responsible tourism.

The memory cells survive to protect their host against further infections by the same invader.

Nothing can protect them from the vagaries of nature.

In the desert, protect from afternoon sun by planting them in a spot where they'll get filtered shade or an eastern exposure.

The iPad is held inside by straps across its corners, and the cover closes to protect the screen.

And colleges are obligated by law to protect information about students.

More soldiers have defected-though only a few-and some have returned fire to protect protesters.

The toads make the toxins to protect themselves against predators, which learn not to eat the deadly amphibians.

So nations should do what they can to protect and develop their own forest and eco-systems.

Steinmetz's work led to the measures used to protect power equipment from lightning strikes.

The leaves can cause irritation, so protect your skin.

What's needed is some level-headedness and clarity about what academic freedom can and cannot protect.

Learn how technology today can help protect this invaluable resource.

It is responsible for enforcing the laws that protect our threatened fisheries and endangered marine mammals.

Protect your soil by keeping it cover cropped while not in production.

Engineers are now constructing a berm of sand near the wreckage to protect it from ocean currents and hurricanes.

Clearly animals' colors did not protect them from him.

Protect the basket from rain, since the liner provides no drainage, and water only lightly.

The nonprofit hopes this practice will reduce destruction of mangrove forests, which protect coasts from erosion.

Come on out and learn about our feathered friends as conservation efforts underway to protect them.

In the desert or hot interiors, protect plants from afternoon sun.

The shale gas industry maintains that its safeguards protect drinking water and land.

It gleams with a glaze of ice that is left undefrosted to protect it.

In areas where ground freezes, used mulch to protect plantings.

As the gecko pushes through leaves and dirt, the ridges may help protect its eyes.

Many decorate and protect hillsides, banks, freeway landscapes.

Add another inch of sand, then a sheet of window screen or hardware cloth to protect the cable.

Use a tighter-than-usual spacing method for seedlings so that plants will support each other and protect foliage from sunburn.

In cold-winter areas, grow in containers or mulch to protect from freezing and thawing.

Two lots make up the property--one developed, the other left natural to protect ocean views.

Protect young trees from sun scald by wrapping the trunks loosely in burlap.

It will protect you if you fall, and also protect you in the much more likely event of falling debris.

In hot interior climates, protect from hot winds and supply adequate water.

Cover the plot with netting to protect it from birds and critters.

The custom-built columns, added to give the fence more presence, also protect metal support brackets from exposure.

Protect from wind in cold climates more add to my plant list.

Protect plants from reflected heat of light-colored walls or pavement.

Chicken-wire cylinders will protect individual young plants.

Protect in colder zones by mounding soil or leaves over base of plants.

If you live near the ocean, choose salt-tolerant plants and use windbreaks to protect your garden from sea spray.

Facebook has reached an agreement with state attorneys general to implement a new set of safety measures to protect young users.

How people's impulse to protect themselves from poisons can actually hurt the.

If the peacekeepers hand them over, their avowed mission to protect civilians could be fatally compromised.

Forests help filter pollution out of the water and protect against flooding, mudslides, and erosion.

Some of the ways bacteria protect themselves from antibiotics might be used against them to strengthen.

And many of these processes are big enough that even people in industrialized nations cannot protect themselves.

Opening the bottle at arm's length would be enough to protect the killer from receiving a deadly.

Franklin has surveyed ranchers using llamas to protect sheep, and found that llamas seem to be earning their keep.

Recent studies have suggested that tea can protect the heart and battle bad breath.

We try to protect ourselves against volcanoes and tornadoes, but they overcome us despite our best precautions.

Used to protect tender plants or rooted cuttings during the colder months, a cold frame is simply a box with a.

They also say that copyright laws and usage agreements already protect databases.

To protect his novel production process, which involves.

It's not every day that the struggle to protect an endangered species makes it to the silver screen.

Strong, lightweight materials made from nanotubes could protect aircraft and satellites from harmful electromagnetic interference.

Wildlife enthusiasts paid the lighthouse keeper to protect the two birds from hunters.

Foam, plastic cups, or cardboard boxes will also protect the tender tips of columnar cactus if you're not a knitter.

Baker examines how several states have worked toward establishing safe-harbor laws that protect underage girls and victims of.

Insurance cannot protect against one of a fund's gravest threats: withdrawals.

Many tropical frog species secrete compounds known as alkaloids to protect themselves from predators and prevent infections.

New regulations to protect children and wildlife go into effect next year.

Wooden pews are stacked up around the sanctuary, and the pulpit has been removed to protect it from vandals.

Supporters say net neutrality rules will protect consumers and sets fair rules for all.

All you need do is locate a suitable nest and run string from it to the trees you wish to protect.

Before poking through seafloor mud for a delectable crustacean or cephalopod, the dolphins protect their sensitive.

Such a device could slash trial length, aid job screeners and protect borders.

Don't protect your smart home with a dumb old dead bolt.

Universities are replete not only with beefy football players, but with the kinds of people who can help protect our blind sides.

For a similar reason, attempts to protect privacy through new laws will fail-as they have done in the past.

With conservation cheaper than cleanup, governments are paying people to protect water supplies at the source.

Understanding ways in which viruses protect themselves could help scientists better understand--and fight--viral infections.

The designation would likely help protect the towers and raise money to restore them.

Facebook is not alone in pursuing trademark actions to protect household-name recognition.

But consumer advocates say stricter oversight is needed to protect borrowers.

But the other was, in fact, to protect the government from undue religious influence.

No one welcomes a serious infection, but in some cases it can help to protect you against tumors.

They want to protect their forest, culture, system of healing.

BodyGuardz makes clear, scratch-proof covers to protect your expensive and delicate investments.

They do not help with the muscle and joint pain, but they do protect one's teeth from wear.

Our role is to protect consumers and enable them to secure value for money and benefit from reliable supplies.

Learn how stones, no-till farming, and composting toilets can protect soil.

Some of the ways bacteria protect themselves from antibiotics might be used against them to strengthen existing drugs.

Jailors made little effort to protect the prisoners from each other.

Watch how to use mulch to protect your plants from extreme temperatures.

Just having been alive for a while could protect you from getting the novel swine flu circling the planet.

Countries hold foreign-exchange reserves partly to protect themselves against external crises.

It's difficult to protect migrating whale sharks once they leave designated no-fishing zones.

Some of the ways bacteria protect themselves from antibiotics might be used against them to.

Now it is up to residents, architects and heritage groups to protect it.

In zones that receive any frost, protect by growing under lath or trees.

The main job of a spacesuit is to protect its wearer.

In the interim, you need to protect yourself professionally and personally.

Critics say that it did not protect its servers sufficiently and used algorithms to encrypt data that can be easily cracked.

Ask them if they know of measures people take to protect wildlife and plants from pollution.

New approaches are needed to protect the food supply.

Even though there are existing laws which protect endangered wildlife against such activities.

Their purpose is to protect your fragile eyeballs from wind and sun,.

But critics of the rule say such efforts won't do enough to protect students in the face of expanded data-sharing.

But legislation to protect consumers from rapacious bankers has had unintended consequences, too.

Musk oxen try to protect their young from a pack of arctic wolves.

We should avoid contact by all means, protect their environment, demarcate their lands and let them live their traditional lives.

Females land on the beach heavily pregnant from the previous breeding season and eager to find a strong male to protect them.

We should find a way to protect artists while permitting this sharing to survive.

Tenure won't protect you from heating bills, car repairs, or the fact that you can't buy milk until tomorrow when you get paid.

Rising crime has made many families feel they need firearms to protect themselves.

The danger may only get worse, and geologists hope to map problem areas to help protect the public.

Some of the ways bacteria protect themselves from antibiotics might be used against.

We need them not primarily as a way to police people but as a way to protect them from unfair treatment.

Brought in to protect the health of non-smokers who worked in or frequented such places, it seems to have worked.

Emperor cichlid parents push and shove a much heavier terrapin to protect their young from being eaten.

Earlier bedtimes set by parents protect against depression.

When they're not excavating, the archaeologists cover a lot of the pillars up with stones to protect them from the elements.

One way to protect tomatoes against this disease is to erect plastic-covered shelters over plants.

Across the country, men have formed neighborhood watches and set up roadblocks and patrols to protect their families and property.

More concerns were raised about the potentially weak measures that companies employ to protect and secure data over the internet.

Ultimately, researchers hope these studies will provide the scientific evidence needed to better protect great whites.

Tech companies handcuff our files to protect against digital pirates.

They protect shorelines from hurricanes and tsunamis and are a source of potential biopharmaceuticals.

Overnight in refrigerator, to protect flavor and retain juices.

The real problem comes when judges try to protect privacy by stopping newspapers from breaching it in the first place.

Mothers care for their young chicks and protect them with the warmth of their own brood pouches.

They are a means for an insurer to help provide for future claims by policyholders or a farmer to protect against crop losses.

Learn what you can do to conserve resources and protect the planet.

Army didn't bother to properly test five million body armor plates that were supposed to protect soldiers on the battlefield.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

protect (prəˈtɛkt)

—vb
1.	to defend from trouble, harm, attack, etc
2.	economics to assist (domestic industries) by the imposition of protective tariffs on imports
3.	commerce to provide funds in advance to guarantee payment of (a note, draft, etc)

[C16: from Latin prōtegere to cover before, from pro-¹ + tegere to cover]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

protect

1520s, from L. protectus, pp. of protegere (see protection). Protectorate "state or territory (usually tribal) placed under the protection of a major power" is from 1860.

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"Trust me that as I ignore all law to help the slave, so will I ignore it all to protect an enslaved woman."

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