Verb
guard against (third-person singular simple present guards against, present participle guarding against, simple past and past participle guarded against)
To prevent something unpleasant from happening.
Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism. George Washington
I can be on guard against my enemies, but God deliver me from my friends! Charlotte Brontë
In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. Dwight D. Eisenhower
Good actions are a guard against the blows of adversity. Abu Bakr
The great and important duty which is incumbent on Christians, is to guard against all appearance of evil; to watch against the first risings in the heart to evil; and to have a guard upon our actions, that they may not be sinful, or so much as seem to be so. George Whitefield
No one can guard against treachery. German Proverb