defensive
adjective
[ dɪˈfɛnsɪv ]
• used or intended to defend or protect.
• "defensive barriers"
Similar:
defending,
guarding,
safeguarding,
protecting,
protective,
shielding,
screening,
wary,
watchful,
averting,
withstanding,
opposing,
• very anxious to challenge or avoid criticism.
• "he was very defensive about that side of his life"
Similar:
self-justifying,
oversensitive,
thin-skinned,
easily offended,
prickly,
paranoid,
neurotic,
uptight,
twitchy,
umbrageous,
Origin:
late Middle English: from Old French défensif, -ive, from medieval Latin defensivus, from Latin defens- ‘warded off’, from the verb defendere (see defend).
on the defensive
• expecting or resisting criticism or attack.
• "British forces were on the defensive"
