vanquish

verb

van·​quish ˈvaŋ-kwish  ˈvan- 

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

ˈvaŋ-kwi-shə-bəl 

ˈvan-

adjective

vanquisher noun

Synonyms of vanquish

• subdue
• conquer
• dominate
• subject
• defeat
• overcome

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

One showed martial-arts legend Bruce Lee vanquishing a roomful of opponents. —Bart Jansen, USA Today, 6 Feb. 2026

With no Texas Tech — the team the Longhorns vanquished in the WCWS finals a year ago — on the nonconference schedule like last season, a home series with Oklahoma April 10-12 edges out a home series with Texas A&M March 27-29 for the hottest ticket of the season. —Thomas Jones, Austin American Statesman, 6 Feb. 2026

At Ebbets Field, on July 12th, whatever residual uncertainty there was of Robinson’s dominance is vanquished at the All-Star Game, the first to have Black players in the lineup. —Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 1 Feb. 2026

On a subconscious level, if those movies could be vanquished, maybe Trump could be too. —Nate Jones, Vulture, 31 Jan. 2026

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

Kids Definition

vanquish

verb

van·​quish ˈvaŋ-kwish  ˈvan- 

: to defeat and subdue completely

vanquisher noun