Defense word meaning and definition

[noun] protection from harm; "sanitation is the best defense against disease"
[noun] military action or resources protecting a country against potential enemies; "they died in the defense of Stalingrad"; "they were developed for the defense program"
[noun] a defendant's answer or plea denying the truth of the charges against him; "he gave evidence for the defense"
[noun] a structure used for defense; "the artillery battered down the defenses"
[noun] the justification for some act or belief; "he offered a persuasive defense of the theory"
[noun] the speech act of answering an attack on your assertions; "his refutation of the charges was short and persuasive"; "in defense he said the other man started it"
[noun] an organization of defenders that provides resistance against attack; "he joined the defense against invasion"
[noun] the defendant and his legal advisors collectively; "the defense called for a mistrial"
[noun] the team that is trying to prevent the other team from scoring; "his teams are always good on defense"
[noun] the federal department responsible for safeguarding national security; created in 1947
[noun] (psychiatry) an unconscious process that tries to reduce the anxiety associated with instinctive desires

\De*fense"\, Defence \De*fence"\, n. [F. d['e]fense, OF. defense, fem., defens, masc., fr. L. defensa (cf. LL. defensum), from defendere. See {Defend}, and cf. {Fence}.] 1. The act of defending, or the state of being defended; protection, as from violence or danger. In cases of defense 't is best to weigh The enemy more mighty than he seems. --Shak. 2. That which defends or protects; anything employed to oppose attack, ward off violence or danger, or maintain security; a guard; a protection. War would arise in defense of the right. --Tennyson. God, the widow's champion and defense. --Shak. 3. Protecting plea; vindication; justification. Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defense. --Acts xxii. 1. 4. (Law) The defendant's answer or plea; an opposing or denial of the truth or validity of the plaintiff's or prosecutor's case; the method of proceeding adopted by the defendant to protect himself against the plaintiff's action. 5. Act or skill in making defense; defensive plan or policy; practice in self defense, as in fencing, boxing, etc. A man of great defense. --Spenser. By how much defense is better than no skill. --Shak. 6. Prohibition; a prohibitory ordinance. [Obs.] Severe defenses . . . against wearing any linen under a certain breadth. --Sir W. Temple.
\De*fense"\, v. t. To furnish with defenses; to fortify. [Obs.] [Written also {defence}.] Better manned and more strongly defensed. --Hales.

Morse code: -.. . ..-. . -. ... .