Investments are generally divided into two types: defensive and growth. Defensive investments are lower risk and tend to protect your wealth rather than grow it. Growth investments are riskier and tend to grow your wealth rather than preserve it. Usually, bonds are considered defensive assets while stocks are considered growth assets.
Prefer defensive investments if you need to meet shorter-term financial goals, such as saving for a home deposit in 2 years, or to reduce the volatility of your portfolio (source).