defense mechanism

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Experts say rattlesnakes typically don’t bite unless they feel threatened and use their bite as a defense mechanism.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

For Divon, Pallywood is less a conspiracy theory than a psychological defense mechanism.

From Slate • May 30, 2025

My greatest fears began to unfold as I crept back into the only defense mechanism I’ve ever known.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 28, 2024

"There is no other vegetable with a defense mechanism that if you attack it, it will spit sulfuric acid in your eyes."

From Salon • Mar. 11, 2024

The therapist Mark and Linda made him see had called it a defense mechanism, and Joaquin thought that sounded exactly like something that someone who never needed a defense mechanism would say.

From "Far from the Tree" by Robin Benway