defence in WordNet English dictionary

1. (military) military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies
   "they died in the defense of Stalingrad"; "they were developed for the defense program"
   defense  defence  defensive measure 
   
2. the act of defending someone or something against attack or injury
   "a good boxer needs a good defense"; "defense against hurricanes is an urgent problem"
   defense  defence 
   
3. a defendant's answer or plea denying the truth of the charges against him
   "he gave evidence for the defense"
   defense  defence  denial  demurrer 
   
4. protection from harm
   "sanitation is the best defense against disease"
   defense  defence 
   
5. a structure used to defend against attack
   "the artillery battered down the defenses"
   defensive structure  defense  defence 
   
6. the justification for some act or belief
   "he offered a persuasive defense of the theory"
   defense  defence  vindication 
   
7. the speech act of answering an attack on your assertions
   "his refutation of the charges was short and persuasive"; "in defense he said the other man started it"
   refutation  defense  defence 
   
8. the defendant and his legal advisors collectively
   "the defense called for a mistrial"
   defense  defence  defense team  defense lawyers 
   
9. (sports) the team that is trying to prevent the other team from scoring
   "his teams are always good on defense"
   defense  defence  defending team 
   
10. an organization of defenders that provides resistance against attack
    "he joined the defense against invasion"
    defense  defence  defense force  defence force 
    
11. (psychiatry) an unconscious process that tries to reduce the anxiety associated with instinctive desires
    defense mechanism  defense reaction  defence mechanism  defence reaction  defense  defence