fend

Word family

fend /fend/ verb

1 fend for yourself INDEPENDENT PERSONto look after yourself without needing help from other people 独立生活；照料自己

The kids had to fend for themselves while their parents were away.

父母不在家时，孩子们只好自己照料自己。

Examples from the Corpus

fend for yourself• We were left to fend for ourselves.• Young Basque men emigrated because no patrimony could by custom be divided, leaving younger sons to fend for themselves.• The mother died before the cubs were old enough to fend for themselves.• Small amounts of food must be left for the birds until they learn to fend for themselves.• The captain radioed for assistance, but the convoy sped away, leaving the Vanzetti to fend for herself.• Children are left to fend for themselves and often get in trouble in the process.• Thereafter they fend for themselves and she is quickly into preparation for her next litter.• Dad always wanted me to be able to fend for myself from a very early age.• The children were left to fend for themselves on the streets.• Young birds are left to fend for themselves soon after they hatch.• So Snow White must fend for herself when she is abandoned by the hunter in the forest.• Now it must fend for itself, without parental care.

2 fend somebody/something off phrasal verbphr v

a) DEFENDto defend yourself against someone who is attacking you 挡开…的攻击 SYN fight somebody ↔ off

Tabitha threw up an arm to fend her attacker off.

塔比莎挥臂挡开行凶者。

b) AVOIDto defend yourself from something such as difficult questions, competition, or a situation you do not want to deal with 避开，回避

She uses her secretary to fend off unwanted phone calls.

她让秘书挡掉不想接的电话。

The company managed to fend off the hostile takeover bid.

公司设法避开了恶意收购。

Examples from the Corpus

fend off• Nick was usually so keen to see her she had to fend him off.• Other people who get psoriasis only on knees and elbows may need to fend people off.• She threw up an arm, fending him off.• Despite her wooden leg, she was able to fend him off easily.• He could fend them off, the appalling moments.• Newman had kept the conversation general, fending Evelyn off when she tried to bring it on a more personal basis.• He tried to fend the animal off with his elbow while inserting the key in the office door.• The lion mauls the warrior, who is desperately trying to fend him off with his knees and shield.

Examples from the Corpus

fend• When your skin was young, it could fend for itself.• The raven was determined to fend off any potential threat and maintain its fiefdom of Edge Wood.• The new system was credited for fending off damage from major floods in 1996.• Nothing that we see in the park can quite fend off mythology.• That is why he manoeuvred frantically, and brilliantly, to fend off the challenge to his party leadership last month.

Origin fend

(1200-1300) defend

fend verb

Chinese

Corpus