Dictionary
Thesaurus
Medical
Scrabble®
Spanish Central
Browse DictionaryBrowse Thesaurus
Get our free apps!iPhone•iPad•Android
Games
Word of the Day
Video
Blog: Words at Play
My Faves
Dictionary

defang

verb de·fang \(ˌ)dē-ˈfaŋ\

Definition of DEFANG

transitive verb
:  to make harmless or less powerful
ADVERTISEMENT

First Known Use of DEFANG

1953

Rhymes with DEFANG

bang-bang, big bang, birth pang, blue tang, chain gang, cliff-hang, Da Nang, go hang, harangue, linsang, meringue, mustang, orang, parang, press-gang, shebang, slam-bang, straphang, trepang, whizbang

Browse

Next Word in the Dictionary: defassaPrevious Word in the Dictionary: defaminglyAll Words Near: defang
ADVERTISEMENT
10 Charming Words for Nasty People
Put-downs with flair
Learn More
When "Literally" isn't, well, literal
How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts.
Watch Now
Know what this is?
Test your vocab with our fun, fast game
Go Play
Fear of cats?
Ailurophobia, and 9 other unusual fears
Learn More
Join Us
Merriam-Webster
on Facebook
Merriam-Webster
on Twitter
Bookstore: Digital and Print
Merriam-Webster references for Mobile, Kindle, print, and more.
See All
Other Merriam-Webster Dictionaries