off guard
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
| a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. |
1375–1425; late Middle English garde guardianship < Old French g(u)arde, noun derivative of g(u)arder (v.) < Germanic; see ward
Related forms
1. shield, shelter, safeguard; preserve, save. See defend. 3. hold, watch. 9. defender, protector; watchman, guardian; guardsman, sentry, sentinel, patrol. 14. defense, protection, aegis, security, safety; bulwark, shield.
1. attack.
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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guard (ɡɑːd) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb (usually foll by against) | |
| 1. | to watch over or shield (a person or thing) from danger or harm; protect |
| 2. | to keep watch over (a prisoner or other potentially dangerous person or thing), as to prevent escape |
| 3. | (tr) to control: to guard one's tongue |
| 4. | to take precautions |
| 5. | to control entrance and exit through (a gate, door, etc) |
| 6. | (tr) to provide (machinery, etc) with a device to protect the operator |
| 7. | (tr) |
| a. chess, cards to protect or cover (a chess man or card) with another | |
| b. curling, bowls to protect or cover (a stone or bowl) by placing one's own stone or bowl between it and another player | |
| 8. | archaic (tr) to accompany as a guard |
| —n | |
| 9. | a person or group who keeps a protecting, supervising, or restraining watch or control over people, such as prisoners, things, etcRelated: custodial |
| 10. | a person or group of people, such as soldiers, who form a ceremonial escort: guard of honour |
| 11. | (Brit) the official in charge of a train |
| 12. | a. the act or duty of protecting, restraining, or supervising |
| b. (as modifier): guard duty | |
| 13. | (Irish) another word for garda |
| 14. | a device, part, or attachment on an object, such as a weapon or machine tool, designed to protect the user against injury, as on the hilt of a sword or the trigger of a firearm |
| 15. | anything that provides or is intended to provide protection: a guard against infection |
| 16. | a. another name for safety chain |
| b. a long neck chain often holding a chatelaine | |
| 17. | See guard ring |
| 18. | sport an article of light tough material worn to protect any of various parts of the body |
| 19. | basketball |
| a. the position of the two players in a team who play furthest from the basket | |
| b. a player in this position | |
| 20. | the posture of defence or readiness in fencing, boxing, cricket, etc |
| 21. | cricket take guard (of a batsman) to choose a position in front of the wicket to receive the bowling, esp by requesting the umpire to indicate his position relative to the stumps |
| 22. | cricket give guard (of an umpire) to indicate such a position to a batsman |
| 23. | off one's guard having one's defences down; unprepared |
| 24. | on one's guard prepared to face danger, difficulties, etc |
| 25. | stand guard (of a military sentry, etc) to keep watch |
| 26. | mount guard |
| a. (of a sentry) to begin to keep watch | |
| b. ( | |
| Related: custodial | |
| [C15: from Old French garde, from garder to protect, of Germanic origin; compare Spanish guardar; see | |
| 'guardable | |
| —adj | |
| 'guarder | |
| —n | |
| 'guardless | |
| —adj | |
| 'guardlike | |
| —adj | |
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guard
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Guard definition
(1.) Heb. tabbah (properly a "cook," and in a secondary sense "executioner," because this office fell to the lot of the cook in Eastern countries), the bodyguard of the kings of Egypt (Gen. 37:36) and Babylon (2 Kings 25:8; Jer. 40:1; Dan. 2:14). (2.) Heb. rats, properly a "courier," one whose office was to run before the king's chariot (2 Sam. 15:1; 1 Kings 1:5). The couriers were also military guards (1 Sam. 22:17; 2 Kings 10:25). They were probably the same who under David were called Pelethites (1 Kings 14:27; 2 Sam. 15:1). (3.) Heb. mishmereth, one who watches (Neh. 4:22), or a watch-station (7:3; 12:9; Job 7:12). In the New Testament (Mark 6:27) the Authorized Version renders the Greek _spekulator_ by "executioner," earlier English versions by "hangman," the Revised Version by "soldier of his guard." The word properly means a "pikeman" or "halberdier," of whom the bodyguard of kings and princes was composed. In Matt. 27:65, 66; 28:11, the Authorized Version renders the Greek _kustodia_ by "watch," and the Revised Version by "guard," the Roman guard, which consisted of four soldiers, who were relieved every three hours (Acts 12:4). The "captain of the guard" mentioned Acts 28:16 was the commander of the Praetorian troops, whose duty it was to receive and take charge of all prisoners from the provinces.
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off guard
Also, off one's guard. Not watchful, easily surprised. It is often put as catch (or be caught) off guard, meaning "take (or be taken) by surprise." For example, The securities analyst was caught off guard by that financial report, or With any luck the boss will be off guard when I come in late. [Late 1600s] The antonym, on guard or on one's guard, meaning "watchful or prepared, especially to defend oneself," was first recorded in 1577. For example, In this crowd we must be on guard against pickpockets, or I'm always on my guard when I'm asked how I voted.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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