English Meaning & Definitions
To protect against, prevent, or avert something undesirable.
- “Heaven forefend that such a disaster should ever befall our town.”
- “They took strict precautions to forefend any potential security breaches.”
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “forefend”.
Derived from Middle English, combining 'fore-' (meaning 'before' or 'in front of', used here intensively) and 'fend' (short for 'defend'). It has been used since the 15th century, often in literary contexts or solemn invocations to protect against or avert evil.
Think of it as 'fore-' (before hand) plus 'defend'—you defend beforehand to prevent something bad from happening.
Frequently Asked Questions About “forefend”
1. What is the meaning of “forefend” in English?
In English, forefend (verb) is defined as: “To protect against, prevent, or avert something undesirable.”.
2. How do you use “forefend” in a sentence?
“Heaven forefend that such a disaster should ever befall our town.”
3. What are English synonyms of “forefend”?
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “forefend”?
Derived from Middle English, combining 'fore-' (meaning 'before' or 'in front of', used here intensively) and 'fend' (short for 'defend'). It has been used since the 15th century, often in literary contexts or solemn invocations to protect against or avert evil.
🇬🇧More English Words to English
View all English words →A measurement of time indicating an instantaneous occurrence or a state where no time has elapsed.
The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), equal to the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.