[self-di-fens, self-] 
| 1. | the act of defending one's person when physically attacked, as by countering blows or overcoming an assailant: the art of self-defense. |
| 2. | a claim or plea that the use of force or injuring or killing another was necessary in defending one's own person from physical attack: He shot the man who was trying to stab him and pleaded self-defense at the murder trial. |
| 3. | an act or instance of defending or protecting one's own interests, property, ideas, etc., as by argument or strategy. |
| self-de·fense (sělf'dĭ-fěns') n.
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