DEFENDING, participle present tense Denying; opposing; resisiting; forbidding; maintaining uninjured by force or by reason; securing from evil.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI
defending
Founding-era definition · Webster's 1828 American Dictionary
More founding-era words: liberty · virtue · republic · justice · providence · commerce · militia · arms · prudence · establishment · religion · usurpation · tyranny · citizen · unalienable · sovereign