fend

[ fend ]
See synonyms for fend on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
  1. to ward off (often followed by off): to fend off blows.

  2. to defend.

verb (used without object)
  1. to resist or make defense: to fend against poverty.

  2. to parry; fence.

  1. to shift; provide: to fend for oneself.

Origin of fend

1
1250–1300; Middle English fenden, aphetic variant of defenden to defend

Other words for fend

Other words from fend

  • un·fend·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use fend in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fend

fend

/ (fɛnd) /


verb
  1. (intr foll by for) to give support (to someone, esp oneself); provide (for)

  2. (tr usually foll by off) to ward off or turn aside (blows, questions, attackers, etc)

  1. (tr) archaic to defend or resist

  2. (intr) Scot and Northern English dialect to struggle; strive

noun
  1. Scot and Northern English dialect a shift or effort

Origin of fend

1
C13 fenden, shortened from defenden to defend

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012