How to Use defensive in a Sentence

defensive

1 of 2 adjective
  • The coach has a strong defensive strategy.
  • When we asked her about the mistakes, she became defensive.
  • The city began building a defensive wall around its borders.
  • I was surprised by his defensive reaction to my suggestion.
  • There's no need to get so defensive. I was only making a suggestion.
  • The government decided to join a defensive alliance with several other nations.
  • That defensive side of the ball goes up.
    — Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 6 Apr. 2026
  • Not all of this work is defensive.
    — Paul Caputo, Forbes.com, 27 June 2026
  • Play six defensive backs, and match speed with speed.
    — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 16 Sep. 2025
  • The junior more than made up for it at the defensive end.
    — Mike Cook, Twin Cities, 15 Mar. 2026
  • Vying for a defensive line spot will be a tall task.
    — Alec Lewis, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026
  • Do his defensive skills make up for his poor shooting?
    — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 31 Jan. 2026
  • Coach Prime knows what his son brings to the defensive side of the ball.
    — Scott Thompson, Fox News, 26 Sep. 2023
  • Beane added a few defensive backs in free agency.
    — Tim Graham, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026
  • At the back, there’s still too much space behind the defensive line.
    — Graham Ruthven, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
  • So, here is the 49ers’ plight in terms of defensive ends.
    — Cam Inman, Mercury News, 19 Apr. 2026
  • The team had a better chance to win that game with a defensive upgrade.
    — Matt Gelb, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2026
  • Focus on the defensive end, giving us a chance to win all these games.
    — Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2026
  • Swayman stopped the puck but had to freeze it for a defensive-zone faceoff.
    — Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2026
  • The long-time defensive coach looked at his staff and decided to clean house.
    — Mike Jones, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2026
  • The defensive line was a big part of that success with 36 sacks.
    — Dylan Heinrich, Kansas City Star, 14 Mar. 2026
  • And this time there were a few defensive mistakes sprinkled in, as well.
    — Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 30 May 2026
  • Mental lapses on the defensive end led to both goals.
    — Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 28 Mar. 2026
  • Ray rejoining the defensive line group would spread out the depth.
    — Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 30 Sep. 2025
  • Williams led the league in steals and came in third in defensive player of the year voting.
    — Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2026
  • Recognize that this is time to ride the leaguewide defensive wave of the past two or three years.
    — Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 13 Feb. 2026
  • Another need comes on the defensive side of the ball.
    — Evan Massey, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Oct. 2025
  • On the defensive side of the football, there are more questions.
    — Evan Massey, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Sep. 2025
  • Reaves had 29 points and six rebounds and made a big defensive play late in the game.
    — Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2026
  • There would be more onus on his partner to put in defensive work, as well as dictate from deep.
    — David Ornstein, New York Times, 5 June 2026

defensive

2 of 2 noun
  • So far, Gulf states have been on the defensive.
    — Tareq Alotaiba, semafor.com, 2 Mar. 2026
  • For the first time in years, the forces of terror are on the defensive.
    — Benjamin Sharoni, Boston Herald, 13 Aug. 2025
  • And this seems to be a time when many people are constantly on the defensive.
    — Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 9 Mar. 2026
  • Trump's speech comes at the start of a crucial election year, and his party is on the defensive.
    — Elena Moore, NPR, 24 Feb. 2026
  • But that didn't stop consumers from viewing its prices as too high, which put the company on the defensive.
    — Amelia Lucas, CNBC, 28 Dec. 2025
  • Valenzuela, an all-league defensive back a year ago, will be targeted more on offense.
    — Steve Brand, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Aug. 2025
  • But Messerschmidt now finds himself on the defensive.
    — Los Angeles Times, 23 Jan. 2026
  • The trash-talking defensive back has already become a presence around the team.
    — Matthew Fairburn, New York Times, 11 June 2026
  • The true freshman defensive back paces the Orange’s secondary with eight pass breakups.
    — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
  • California’s high gas prices have long put Democrats on the defensive.
    — Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Sep. 2025
  • And leaving threw Iran on the defensive, signaling it as the losing state in the war.
    — Benjamin Weinthal, FOXNews.com, 15 Apr. 2026
  • And by then the caller is sufficiently on the defensive.
    — Literary Hub, 3 Mar. 2026
  • The comments have put Kinloch's campaign on the defensive.
    — Violet Ikonomova, Freep.com, 17 Oct. 2025
  • Seeming defensive about your error or attempting to pass blame onto others could raise red flags.
    — Sophie Caldwell, CNBC, 12 Dec. 2025
  • The defense is not built around one uniquely unstoppable edge rusher, a do-it-all linebacker or a shutdown defensive back.
    — Michael-Shawn Dugar, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2025
  • The defensive has now had plenty of time to learn Williams and Vrabel’s new attacking-style defense.
    — Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 19 Aug. 2025
  • The Rams will also look to get second-year defensive back Josh Wallace involved more.
    — Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 22 Nov. 2025
  • This approach would have put unions on the defensive, compelling them to confront the state’s dire financial realities.
    — Frank Ricci, Hartford Courant, 10 Aug. 2025
  • Namdi was an undersized defensive back who had to go the junior college route to get his opportunity.
    — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Oct. 2025
  • Carter was active on both ends by helping make decisions on offense and battling for the ball on the glass with 12 rebounds (nine defensive).
    — Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 Feb. 2026
  • Republicans are on the defensive as Democrats have successfully made the shutdown fight about health care.
    — Nathaniel Weixel, The Hill, 11 Oct. 2025
  • Ravenwood senior defensive back James Nelson didn’t fear missing out last season.
    — Tyler Palmateer, Nashville Tennessean, 15 Nov. 2025
  • Last week rookie defensive tackle Zeek Biggers blocked a 55-yard field goal attempt.
    — Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 5 Jan. 2026
  • Zator was a starting defensive back for Lemont in football as a junior but made the decision to step away from that sport before his senior year.
    — Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 27 Jan. 2026
  • Lizaola also played every defensive down in the game at linebacker and came away with respect for the Uni City offense.
    — The San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Nov. 2025
  • That gives two of the Dolphins’ rookie defensive backs a chance to make their case to be rotation players in 2026.
    — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 19 Dec. 2025
  • During 1-on-1 drills, Morris lined up against London, looking to press the wideout as a faux defensive back.
    — Hailey Hurst, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2025
  • The current Bills player who could stand in the way of this pairing is second-year defensive back Jordan Hancock.
    — Joe Buscaglia, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
  • The growing rift has brought much of the Senate’s business to a halt and put Republicans who are up for reelection this year on the defensive.
    — Mary Clare Jalonick, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2026
  • First, rookie defensive lineman Barryn Sorrell was flagged for holding on the opening kickoff.
    — Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'defensive.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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