vanquish

verb

van·​quish ˈvaŋ-kwish How to pronounce vanquish (audio) ˈvan- How to pronounce vanquish (audio)
vanquished; vanquishing; vanquishes

transitive verb

1
: to overcome in battle : subdue completely
2
: to defeat in a conflict or contest
3
: to gain mastery over (an emotion, passion, or temptation)
vanquish your fear
vanquishable adjective
vanquisher noun
Choose the Right Synonym for vanquish

conquer, vanquish, defeat, subdue, reduce, overcome, overthrow mean to get the better of by force or strategy.

conquer implies gaining mastery of.

Caesar conquered Gaul

vanquish implies a complete overpowering.

vanquished the enemy and ended the war

defeat does not imply the finality or completeness of vanquish which it otherwise equals.

the Confederates defeated the Union forces at Manassas

subdue implies a defeating and suppression.

subdued the native tribes after years of fighting

reduce implies a forcing to capitulate or surrender.

the city was reduced after a month-long siege

overcome suggests getting the better of with difficulty or after hard struggle.

overcame a host of bureaucratic roadblocks

overthrow stresses the bringing down or destruction of existing power.

violently overthrew the old regime

Examples of vanquish in a Sentence

They were vanquished in battle. vanquished nation after nation in his relentless conquest of Europe
Recent Examples on the Web Researchers at Harvard and the University of Illinois at Chicago have created a new molecule that effectively vanquished multiple types of bacteria when tested in animals. Corinne Purtill, Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2024 Mixing special attacks is an effective method to quickly vanquish enemies. George Yang, PCMAG, 7 Feb. 2024 Before suffocating a spectacular Dolphins team, Marino's best, 38-16 in the Super Bowl, the 49ers vanquished the Giants and Bears by a combined score of 44-10 in the NFC playoffs. Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 30 Jan. 2024 The game had dribbled away and cricket has a way of extending the agony of the vanquished in torturous slow motion. Tim Ellis, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024 That was General Douglas MacArthur in June 1950, then overseeing occupied Japan and worrying in a top-secret memo to Washington about the prospect that the Communists in China might seek to vanquish their Nationalist enemies once and for all. Andrew S. Erickson, Foreign Affairs, 16 Feb. 2024 Having donated $265,000 to his own campaign, Meadows vanquished the field of eight Republican candidates and then routed his Democratic opponent in the November 2012 general election. Robert Draper, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2024 The disruption is causing delays and driving up costs – at a time when the world has yet to vanquish a resurgence of inflation. Paul Wiseman and Mae Anderson, The Christian Science Monitor, 30 Jan. 2024 The league’s reigning champions vanquished the AFC’s No. 1 playoff seed 17-10, advancing to the Super Bowl for the fourth time in five seasons. Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 28 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'vanquish.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English venquishen, borrowed from Anglo-French venquis-, extended stem of veintre, vaincre "to defeat, conquer," going back to Latin vincere — more at victor

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of vanquish was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near vanquish

Cite this Entry

“Vanquish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vanquish. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

vanquish

verb
van·​quish ˈvaŋ-kwish How to pronounce vanquish (audio) ˈvan- How to pronounce vanquish (audio)
: to defeat and subdue completely
vanquisher noun

More from Merriam-Webster on vanquish

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