Wehren

Wehren is a German verb meaning to defend against, ward off, or resist. It is used for both physical defenses and more abstract protections, such as resisting accusations or arguments. In many contexts it appears with the reflexive form sich wehren, meaning to defend oneself, and it can also occur in constructions with a direct object or in compound forms such as abwehren to denote repelling something.

Etymology and related terms: The verb derives from a historical Germanic root related to defense, connected to the noun Wehr (defense). Related words include Wehre/Wehr, which denote protective measures, and the verb abwehren (to repel or fend off). The term is common in legal, military, and everyday language.

Usage and grammar: The reflexive form sich wehren is followed by gegen plus the accusative to indicate what is being resisted, for example: Sie wehrt sich gegen die Vorwürfe (She defends herself against the accusations). In non-reflexive use, wehren can take a direct object in contexts like den Angriff wehren or den Angriff abwehren, though the latter form is more frequent in everyday language as abwehren. In the perfect tense, reflexive usage is ich habe mich gewehrt; the non-reflexive past forms align with the standard conjugation of wehren (ich wehrte, er wehrte, wir wehrten).

See also: Wehr, Wehren in military and civil defense, Abwehren, Verteidigung, wehrhaft.

Note: This article focuses on the German verb wehren in its common senses of defense and resistance. It should not be confused with proper nouns or place names that might resemble the term.