undefended
3
6.0
- adjective
- /ˌʌndɪˈfɛndɪd/
:
indefenso
- The team's zone was entirely undefended, allowing the opponent to score easily.
- undefended species
Examples
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Many villages were left undefended during the winter, making them vulnerable to raids.
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Because what you see out there is an undefended town.
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The army has no right to leave a public place like this undefended.
-
My king was left undefended.
Fiction book (1990) -
The only undefended frontier in the world.
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"You have left our embassy staff out in the open, undefended."
Blog text (10) -
It is the largest undefended border in the world.
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Today the Americans made another infamous raid... on an undefended, quiet, little town: the peaceful hamlet of Kaiserberg.
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Compared to a wildly maneuvering military jet, an undefended passenger airliner flying straight and slow made a perfect target.
Fiction book (1996) -
Pipelines are virtually undefended.
Academic text (2005)
Synonyms
77
3.5
Without protection and easy to hurt
28
2.9
Not safe from harm
11
5.2
Not watched or protected so someone can take it
1
6.6
Not covered or protected, for example a wire without a metal case
1
7.7
Open to attack, harm, or strong criticism
Not protected and open to danger
Has no protection by walls or added vitamins
How Defended
Surface Forms
Morphology
undefended = defended (transparent) = un + defend + ed
The negative prefix 'un-' is directly applied to the past-participle/adjective 'defended', yielding 'not protected', which is straightforward for learners who know 'defend' and 'un-'.
Etymology
Undefended comes from the little prefix un- meaning 'not' and the word defend meaning 'to protect' or 'stop an attack', the same root you see in defense and defender. So if something is 'undefended' it is not protected and can be attacked or criticized.