Synonyms of protect

protect

verb

prə-ˈtekt 

as in to defend

to drive danger or attack away from

the mother bear was just trying to protect her cubs

Synonyms & Similar Words

• defend
• safeguard
• shield
• guard
• keep
• secure
• fend
• prevent
• save
• fence
• preserve
• ward
• cover
• conserve
• bulwark
• screen
• stand up for
• forfend
• withstand
• resist
• avert
• oppose
• war
• fight
• contend
• buffer
• battle
• picket
• wall
• palisade

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• attack
• assault
• assail
• beset
• overrun
• submit
• yield
• cave
• bombard
• storm
• besiege
• capitulate

Synonym Chooser

How is the word protect different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of protect are defend, guard, safeguard, and shield. While all these words mean "to keep secure from danger or against attack," protect implies the use of something (such as a covering) as a bar to the admission or impact of what may attack or injure.

a hard hat to protect your head

When is defend a more appropriate choice than protect?

The words defend and protect can be used in similar contexts, but defend denotes warding off actual or threatened attack.

defend the country

When is it sensible to use guard instead of protect?

In some situations, the words guard and protect are roughly equivalent. However, guard implies protecting with vigilance and force against expected danger.

White House entrances are well guarded

When can safeguard be used instead of protect?

Although the words safeguard and protect have much in common, safeguard implies taking precautionary protective measures against merely possible danger.

our civil liberties must be safeguarded

When would shield be a good substitute for protect?

While in some cases nearly identical to protect, shield suggests protective intervention in imminent danger or actual attack.

shielded her eyes from the sun with her hand

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of protect

Teams would no longer be allowed to protect picks in the 12 to 15 range. —Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026

Laboy emphasized the market’s role in protecting students and families who have experienced recurring eligibility or timing issues with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program as well. —Zareen Syed, Chicago Tribune, 29 Apr. 2026

But two battles on the June ballot in Los Angeles have raised the temperature this campaign season and invited questions about the lengths members of the insular local bench will go to protect their own. —James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2026

All the more reason to lock in your personal plans early and protect that time before the professional demands crowd it out. —Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Apr. 2026