If they use "defend" instead of "fend" would that have been a problem?
In a speech defending the U.S. withdrawal last month, Mr. Biden said the United States had done more than enough to empower the Afghan police and military to secure the future of their people. U.S. officials have acknowledged that those forces will struggle, but argue they must now fend for themselves.
Top answer
To fend for oneself is a fixed, somewhat fossilized, expression. It means to go it alone, to bear all the burden of one's own survival, to do without anyone's protection. Merriam-Webster blew this one.
- To fend for oneself is a fixed, somewhat fossilized, expression.
- It means to go it alone, to bear all the burden of one's own survival, to do without anyone's protection.
- Merriam-Webster blew this one.
- "Fend" does not mean "defend" any more.
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To fend for oneself is a fixed, somewhat fossilized, expression. It means to go it alone, to bear all the burden of one's own survival, to do without anyone's protection. Merriam-Webster blew this one. "Fend" does not mean "defend" any more.
0Hasibul Alam If they had used "defend" instead of "fend" would that have been a problem?
Yes, that's a problem. Those words don't have the same meaning.
Here fend occurs in the idiom fend for -self.
They must now fend for themselves. =
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