defenseless

adjective

Definition of defenselessnext
as in vulnerable
lacking protection from danger or resistance against attack the lack of warm clothing left the hikers defenseless against the unexpected cold snap

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for defenseless
  1. vulnerable
  2. helpless
  3. susceptible
  4. unprotected
Adjective
  • Motorcycle Accidents: Motorcyclists are particularly vulnerable on the road.
    Chris Gallagher, Austin American-Statesman, 22 Nov. 2024
  • Some companies have reportedly dealt with safety issues, like bad actors who abuse the model to give harmful advice or prey on vulnerable people.
    Jamie Ducharme, TIME, 22 Nov. 2024
Definition of vulnerable
Adjective
  • Zimbardo spent the rest of his career promoting his theory that humans are helpless against the evil that lies in wait within us to be triggered by circumstance.
    Judy Berman, TIME, 29 Nov. 2024
  • The Gray Panthers ran a Media Watch that scolded television shows for portraying the elderly as helpless, confused, or decrepit.
    Daniel Immerwahr, The New Yorker, 25 Nov. 2024
Definition of helpless
Adjective
  • Some years, of course, are more susceptible to genuine feelings of thanksgiving than others.
    Baltimore Sun Editorial Board, Baltimore Sun, 27 Nov. 2024
  • The panther population was mostly decimated by hunting, according to the National Wildlife Federation, and remains susceptible to low genetic diversity, illnesses and habitat loss.
    Kerry Breen, CBS News, 27 Nov. 2024
Definition of susceptible
Adjective
  • Players with player or team options in their contracts were fair game to be left unprotected, too.
    Bryan Toporek, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024
  • The new advice is to test anyone with a significant bird flu exposure, such as an unprotected worker who’s been splashed in the face with raw milk on a dairy farm with known H5N1 infections in the herds.
    Erika Edwards, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2024
Definition of unprotected
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.

Thesaurus Entries Near defenseless

defense

defenseless

defenselessness

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Defenseless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defenseless. Accessed 3 Dec. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on defenseless

Nglish: Translation of defenseless for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of defenseless for Arabic Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

9 Superb Owl Words

15 Words That Used to Mean Something Different
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
sweet smart pug puppy dog sitting in front of blackboard with chalk question marks
Commonly Confused Words Quiz Vol. 3 Do you have a (flare/flair) for choosing the righ...