How to Use fend off in a Sentence

fend off

verb
  • Sale, 37, passed the eye test even while fending off threats.
    — Gabriel Burns, AJC.com, 28 Mar. 2026
  • That helped fend off severe drought conditions.
    — Jonathan Thompson, Denver Post, 18 Mar. 2026
  • Asuka then crushed Sky with a kick to chest to fend off a comeback attempt.
    — Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 9 May 2026
  • Another shopper was able to fend off a hungry rat.
    — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 June 2026
  • Footage showed the gang fending off attacks from a sushi monster during a car chase with rapid-fire gags.
    — Ryan Gaur, Variety, 25 June 2026
  • The investment comes at a time when ports are in dire need of help to fend off attacks from bad actors.
    — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 15 May 2026
  • The online course teaches people how to fend off an attacker and call for help.
    — Tara Lynch, CBS News, 11 May 2026
  • Here, a plane crash in treacherous waters leads to survivors fending off sharks.
    — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 18 Mar. 2026
  • Berry fended off multiple trade calls after the contract broke, a league source said.
    — Jourdan Rodrigue, New York Times, 2 June 2026
  • Elise, meanwhile, is trying to fend off her agent who keeps pressing her about a long overdue deadline.
    — Stephen Farber, HollywoodReporter, 15 June 2026
  • Allen, though, will have to fend off another candidate to advance.
    — Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 3 June 2026
  • The hard part will be fending off the attention of gobsmacked friends at the party.
    — Kathryn Streeter, Southern Living, 29 May 2026
  • The hard part will be fending off the attention of gobsmacked friends at the party.
    — Kathryn Streeter, Southern Living, 17 June 2026
  • Strickland was able to get to his feet and fend off submission attempts from Chimaev.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 10 May 2026
  • Each one would need to stock more interceptors and operate with escort ships to fend off attacks.
    — Editorial, Boston Herald, 30 May 2026
  • Remove discolored leaves to fend off fungal disease.
    — Abby Monteil, The Spruce, 27 June 2026
  • While the man was being attacked, the woman used a shopping cart to fend off the suspect and protect the male victim.
    — Tim Fang, CBS News, 11 May 2026
  • Here, against Qatar, Johnston drives forward to fend off two defenders to get to the byline.
    — Mark Carey, New York Times, 24 June 2026
  • Thursday’s game was set to feature a Clippers squad fighting to fend off Portland for eighth place and a play-in slot.
    — Jeff McDonald, San Antonio Express-News, 2 Apr. 2026
  • Elsewhere, a Kennedy scion fell short, and two longtime incumbents fended off challengers.
    — Alex Lemonides, New York Times, 24 June 2026
  • The five-term senator has fended off a handful of challenges from Democrats in previous races.
    — Kaia Hubbard, CBS News, 14 Apr. 2026
  • The two brothers have had nothing but kind things to say about each other, and have managed to fend off any chatter about a sibling rivalry.
    — Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 1 July 2026
  • Before long, the young actor was fending off questions about the Marvel hero in interviews.
    — Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 16 June 2026
  • There’s no team in baseball as good as the Giants fending off a sweep; no team worse than the Giants every other day.
    — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 16 June 2026
  • That challenges the topside support team, which must operate equipment to keep the diver safe while fending off their own risk of frostbite.
    — ABC News, 27 Mar. 2026
  • On YouTube, prospecting influencers post videos of themselves fending off bears and spelunking down old mines.
    — Jennifer Wilson, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
  • Traders on Kalshi give Espaillat two-in-three odds of fending off the challenge from Chevalier.
    — Davis Giangiulio, CNBC, 23 June 2026
  • French frigates used machine guns, cannons and sophisticated air-defense missiles to fend off Houthi strikes.
    — ABC News, 16 June 2026
  • As the conductor was trying to fend off that attack, sources say, an unknown accomplice on the platform reached through the cab window and took a train-door key.
    — Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 27 May 2026
  • One of Gaspin’s challenges might be fending off competition from rival streamers and networks.
    — Peter White, Deadline, 4 May 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fend off.' 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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