fend
Pronunciation Verb

fend (fends, present participle fending; past and past participle fended)

  1. (intransitive) To take care of oneself; to take responsibility for one's own well-being.
    • 1990, Messrs Howley and Murphy, quoted in U.S. House Subcommittee on Labor Standards, Oversight hearing on the Federal Service Contract Act,[http://books.google.com/books?id=Bc8gAAAAMAAJ ] U.S. Government Printing Office, page 40,
      Mr. Howley. They are telling him how much they will increase the reimbursement for the total labor cost. The contractor is left to fend as he can.
      Chairman Murphy. Obviously, he can’t fend for any more than the money he has coming in.
    • 2003, Scott Turow, Reversible Errors, [http://books.google.com/books?id=xgHjlsLhMUwC&pg=PA376&dq=fends+OR+fend+OR+fending+OR+fended+-as-best+-off+-for-herself+-for-himself+-for-themselves+-for-myself+-for-yourself+date:1900-2009+subject:fiction&lr=lang_en&as_brr=3&ei=YP0oSOLmA4LIigGoj-y-DQ&sig=iE939PKUiRFg9HP61QylkBC9fus page 376]
      The planet was full of creatures in need, who could not really fend, and the law was at its best when it ensured that they were treated with dignity.
  2. (rare, except as "fend for oneself") To defend, to take care of (typically construed with for); to block or push away (typically construed with off).
    • With fern beneath to fend the bitter cold.
    • 1999, Kuan-chung Lo, Guanzhong Luo, Luo Guanzhong, Moss Roberts, Three Kingdoms: A Historical Novel, page 39
      He fends, he blocks, too skillful to be downed.
    • 2002, Jude Deveraux, A Knight in Shining Armor, [http://books.google.com/books?id=IV2Gkol65s4C&pg=PA187&dq=fends+OR+fend+OR+fending+OR+fended+-as-best+-off+-for-herself+-for-himself+-for-themselves+-for-myself+-for-yourself+date:1900-2009+subject:fiction&lr=lang_en&as_brr=3&ei=YP0oSOLmA4LIigGoj-y-DQ&sig=hsskkIqYYqNtevXnbH4d4Sy86eY page 187]
      “ […] My age is lot like yours. Lone women do not fare well. If I were not there to fend for you, you—”
Translations
  • French: prendre soin de soi
  • German: alleine auskommen, für sich selbst sorgen
  • Spanish: valerse por sí mismo
Noun

fend (uncountable)

  1. (obsolete) Self-support; taking care of one's own well-being.
Noun

fend (plural fends)

  1. (UK dialectal) An enemy; fiend; the Devil.



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