FENDING

Verb

fending

present participle of fend

Source: Wiktionary

FEND

Fend, n.

Definition: A fiend. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Fend, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Fended; p. pr. & vb. n. Fending.] Etym: [Abbrev. fr. defend.]

Definition: To keep off; to prevent from entering or hitting; to ward off; to shut out; -- often with off; as, to fend off blows. With fern beneath to fend the bitter cold. Dryden. To fend off a boat or vessel (Naut.), to prevent its running against anything with too much violence.

Fend, v. i.

Definition: To act on the defensive, or in opposition; to resist; to parry; to shift off. The dexterous management of terms, and being able to fend . . . with them, passes for a great part of learning. Locke.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition