🇩🇪German Source WordCode: DE

defensiv

Pronunciation / Transliteration: defensiv

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Defensive/dɪˈfɛnsɪv/
adjectiveCEFR B2 (Upper)Top #1500 frequency
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🇩🇪 Example Sentence in German:

"Die Mannschaft hat eine defensive Strategie angenommen."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As adjective
  1. 1

    Intended to defend or protect.

    "The team adopted a defensive strategy to secure their lead in the game."
  2. 2

    Relating to the action of defending against attack.

    "The defensive measures taken by the government were crucial during the crisis."

Thesaurus & Semantic Spectrum

Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

The word 'defensive' originates from the Latin 'defensivus', which means 'serving to defend'. It evolved through Old French 'defensif', reflecting a shift in usage from a general sense of protection to specific contexts such as sports and military.

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