Defensive

Pronunciation: /dɪˈfɛnsɪv/

Defensive (adjective)

  1. acting to protect yourself from criticism or attack
  2. focused on stopping the other team from scoring
  3. related to protecting a place or country from attack

Examples

  • She became defensive when criticized.
  • He adopted a defensive tone during the argument.

Common collocations: defensive attitude, defensive response, get defensive, defensive play, defensive strategy

Synonyms of Defensive

Formal

Neutral

Informal

Antonyms of Defensive

  • describing actions intended to attack