undefended

adjective

un·​de·​fend·​ed ˌən-di-ˈfen-dəd How to pronounce undefended (audio)
: not guarded or protected : not defended
left the goal undefended
an undefended frontier/border

Examples of undefended in a Sentence

the cowardly soldiers fled, leaving the palace undefended
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In the north, Darwin was facing near-weekly bombing raids from Japanese bases on Timor and surrounding islands, and thousands of miles of tropical coastline were uninhabited and undefended. Tony Perrottet, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Sep. 2024 The whine of mosquitoes probing for just one millimeter of flesh undefended by DEET was constant, set off by a counterpoint buzz of horseflies circling my head. Rusty Foster, Washington Post, 23 July 2024 Finally, the extensive, rugged border between China and India will always furnish undefended areas that provide fertile ground for territory grabs. Dan Altman, Foreign Affairs, 24 Sep. 2021 Public tolerance of inaccurate and undefended allegations, non sequiturs in response to hard questions and outright denials of facts are shockingly high. Kathleen Higgins, Scientific American, 5 Dec. 2016 See all Example Sentences for undefended 

Word History

First Known Use

1564, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of undefended was in 1564

Dictionary Entries Near undefended

Cite this Entry

“Undefended.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/undefended. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

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