defensive C1 Topic:Safety & Risk US /dɪˈfen.sɪv/ UK /dɪˈfɛn.sɪv/ See IPA manual Freq #7280 Meanings 1 adj Used or intended to protect against attack. The army built a defensive wall around the city. 2 adj Quick to protect yourself from criticism, often by arguing back. He became defensive when his work was questioned. 3 adj Done in a careful way to reduce risk. Defensive driving can help you avoid accidents. Thesaurus ↔ Opposites offensive Word family Forms defensively Derived forms counterdefensivecyberdefensivedefensivelydefensivenesshyperdefensiveimmunodefensiveindefensivenondefensiveoverdefensiveself-defensiveundefensive Common collocations defensive attitude Adjective + noun defensive attribution Adjective + noun Etymology AI details From Middle French défensif. Morphologically defense + -ive. Topics Safety & Risk Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # defensive **Type:** Word **Level:** C1 **Part of speech:** adj **IPA (US):** /dɪˈfen.sɪv/ **IPA (UK):** /dɪˈfɛn.sɪv/ **Frequency rank:** 7280 ## Meanings 1. Used or intended to protect against attack. 2. Quick to protect yourself from criticism, often by arguing back. 3. Done in a careful way to reduce risk. ## Examples - The army built a defensive wall around the city. - He became defensive when his work was questioned. - Defensive driving can help you avoid accidents. ## Antonyms - offensive ## Derived Forms - counterdefensive - cyberdefensive - defensively - defensiveness - hyperdefensive - immunodefensive - indefensive - nondefensive - overdefensive - self-defensive - undefensive ## Etymology From Middle French défensif. Morphologically defense + -ive. ## AI Etymology Defensive comes from Middle French défensif. Morphologically defense + -ive. The surrounding word family includes derived forms such as counterdefensive, cyberdefensive, defensively, and defensiveness. In present use it covers used or intended to protect against attack, quick to protect yourself from criticism, often by arguing back, and done in a careful way to reduce risk. ## Topics - Safety & Risk - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown