Link Centre Dictionary

fend

UK/ˈfɛnd/ US/ˈfɛnd/ uncommon obsolete rare uk

verb

1.

try to manage without help

  • “The youngsters had to fend for themselves after their parents died”
2.

withstand the force of something

  • “The trees resisted her”
  • “stand the test of time”
  • “The mountain climbers had to fend against the ice and snow”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English fenden (“defend, fight, prevent”), shortening of defenden (“defend”), from Old French deffendre (Modern French défendre), from Latin dēfendō (“to ward off”), from dē- + *fendō (“hit, thrust”), from Proto-Italic *fendō, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷʰen- (“strike, kill”).

Phrases

  • fend and prove
  • fend away
  • fend for oneself
  • fend off

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Related verbs

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.