guard

• gard, garde, guarde (obsolete)

For verb: From early Middle French garder or late Old French (circa 14th cent) guarder (“to keep, ward, guard, save, preserve, etc.”), from Early Medieval Latin wardāre, from Frankish *wardōn, from Proto-Germanic *wardāną (“to guard, protect”). Cognate with French garder, Old English weardian (whence also the English inherited doublet ward). See also English regard.

For noun: From Middle English garde, from early Middle French or late Old French guarde (“a guardian, warden, keeper”) (whence modern French garde), from the verb guarder. Doublet of garda, which is from Irish.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɡɑːd/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ɡɑɹd/

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• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)d

guard (plural guards)

1. A person who, or thing that, protects or watches over something.

   The prison guard unlocked the door of the cell.   After completing the repairs, he replaced the sump guard.

   • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter II, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

     Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke. […] A silver snaffle on a heavy leather watch guard which connected the pockets of his corduroy waistcoat, together with a huge gold stirrup in his Ascot tie, sufficiently proclaimed his tastes.

2. (Ireland) A garda; a police officer.
   • 2016, Anastasia Dukova, A History of the Dublin Metropolitan Police and its Colonial Legacy, Springer, →ISBN, page 139:

     The Garda Regulations 1924 required a candidate for appointment as a guard to be able to produce satisfactory references as to his character

3. (military) A squad responsible for protecting something.

   The president inspected the guard of honour.

4. The part of a sword that protects the wielder's hand.
5. A part of a machine which blocks access to dangerous parts.

   The motorcycle mechanic removed the damaged chain guard.

6. A watchchain.
7. (Australia) A panel of a car that encloses the wheel area, especially the front wheels.
   • 1996 December 24, Pendles, “Tyres rubbing on guards”, in aus.cars‎ (Usenet):

     Another possible way is to go for a lower profile tyre (50 series). This effectively lowers the distance of the tyre wall away from the guard (not by much though and generally, the lower the profile, the wider the tyre so the tyre may stick out more as well).

   • 1999 November 23, Nathan, “Tyres rubbing on guards”, in aus.cars‎ (Usenet):

     The reason I'm asking - Whenever I put some weight in the back of the car (say - a passenger or two) the rear tyres can sometimes hit the guards.

   • 2001 June 12, Confusement, “Position N or D”, in alt.autos‎ (Usenet):

     I had just bought myself broken headlights, a f**ked up grill, a front guard bent into my front tyre, a leaky radiator and one *SLIGHTLY* bent chassis rail end. I turned the key on my stalled motor and she kicked over first go - if it weren't for the guard bent into the tyre, I could've driven home later if I wanted to.

8. (uncountable) A state of caution; posture of defence.
9. Something worn to protect part of the body, e.g. the shins in cricket.
10. (basketball) A relatively short player, playing farther from the basket than a forward or centre.
11. (cricket) The position on the popping crease where a batsman makes a mark to align himself with the wicket; see take guard.
12. (American football) Either of two offensive positions between the centre and each of the offensive tackles, whose main responsibilities are to protect the quarterback, and open up "holes" through which offensive players can run.
13. (martial arts) A ground grappling position in which one combatant has their back to the ground while attempting to control the other combatant using their legs.
14. (sports) A player playing a position named guard.
15. (rail transport) An employee, normally travelling in the last vehicle of a train, responsible for the safety of the train.
    • 1938, Xavier Herbert, chapter IX, in Capricornia‎, New York: D. Appleton-Century, published 1943, page 141:

      When an engineer wished to stop a swiftly moving train he had first to whistle to the guard requesting him to apply the hand-brake of the van, and then apply the hand-brake of the engine. Guards did not always hear.

16. (programming) A Boolean expression that must evaluate to true for a branch of program execution to continue.
17. (aviation) The aircraft emergency frequency, a radio frequency reserved for emergency communications, typically 121.5MHz for civilian use.

• (the part of a sword that protects the wielder's hand): quillon
• (part of machine blocking dangerous parts): protection
• (panel of a car enclosing a wheel): fender

guard (third-person singular simple present guards, present participle guarding, simple past and past participle guarded)

1. (transitive) To protect from danger; to secure against surprise, attack, or injury; to keep in safety; to defend.
   • 1595 December 9 (first known performance), William Shakespeare, “The life and death of King Richard the Second”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:

     For Heaven still guards the right.

   • 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, Canto XVII, page 28:

     Henceforth, wherever thou may’st roam,
     ⁠My blessing, like a line of light,
     ⁠Is on the waters day and night,
     And like a beacon guards thee home.

2. (transitive) To keep watch over, in order to prevent escape or restrain from acts of violence, or the like.

   Guard the prisoner.

3. (transitive, intransitive) To watch by way of caution or defense; to be cautious; to be in a state or position of defense or safety.

   Careful people guard against mistakes.

4. (transitive) To protect the edge of, especially with an ornamental border; hence, to face or ornament with lists, laces, etc.
   • 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:

     The body of your discourse is sometime guarded with fragments, and the guards are but slightly basted on neither.

5. (transitive) To fasten by binding; to gird.

• “guard”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “guard”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “guard”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

• Dagur, Darug, Dugar, Durga, draug, durag

Borrowed from Italian guardia.

guard m (plural guarzi)

1. (dated) guard