A Concise Dictionary of Middle English from A.D. 1150 to 1580

by A. L. Mayhew; Walter W. Skeat

Defame; see [Diffame].

[ Defaute], sb. defect, fault, S2, C2, PP; defalte, S2; defautis, pl., S3, W2.—AF. defaute, defalte.

[ Defenden], v. to protect, to forbid, S2, MD, C3, H.—AF. defendre; Lat. defendere.

[ Defense], sb. protection, prohibition, MD; defence, S2.—AF. defense, defence.

[ Defet], pp. defeated, MD.—AF. defet, aefait, pp. of defaire.

[ Defien], v. to digest, MD, PP, HD; defye, S2; defy, Cath.

[ Defien], v. to mistrust, to defy, PP; defye, despicere, Cath.—AF. defier, OF. desfier: It. disfidare, to defy, (Florio).

[ Defiguren], v. to disfigure; defygurd, pp., S2.—AF. desfigurer.

[ Defless], sb. pl., devils, S; deflen, S; see [Deuel].

[ Defoulen], v. to tread down, MD, W, W2, H, SkD (s.v. defile); defoilen, MD, SkD; defoulid, pp., W2.—OF. defouler, to trample on, rebuke (Cotg).; cp. fouler (Bartsch), foller, Ps. 138. 11; It. follare, to press, to full clothes (Florio); Lat. *fullare, to full cloth; cp. fullo, a fuller.