win

verb

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\ ˈwin

won\ ˈwən

\; winning

Essential Meaning of win

1 : to achieve victory in a fight, contest, game, etc. The boxer won the match by knockout. They won the battle/war. See More ExamplesShe won the election. He won't give up until he's won the argument. Neither candidate won the debate. We tried our best, but you can't win them all. They played well, but they didn't win. The chances of winning are 1 in 100,000. It's not about winning or losing. It's about having fun. Okay, you win. [=I agree to do what you want] We'll go to the movies.Hide

2 : to get (something, such as a prize) by achieving victory in a fight, contest, game, etc. She won a tennis trophy. Her book won the Pulitzer Prize.

3 : to get (something) by effort She won praise for her hard work. His perseverance won him the job. [=he got the job because of his perseverance]

Full Definition of win

(Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

1a : to get possession of by effort or fortune

b : to obtain by work : earn striving to win a living from the sterile soil

2a : to gain in or as if in battle or contest won the championship

b : to be the victor in won the war

3a : to make friendly or favorable to oneself or to one's cause —often used with over won him over with persuasive arguments

b : to induce to accept oneself in marriage was unable to win the woman he loved

4a : to obtain (something, such as ore, coal, or clay) by mining

b : to prepare (a vein or bed) for regular mining

c : to recover (metal) from ore

5 : to reach by expenditure of effort

intransitive verb

1 : to gain the victory in a contest : succeed

2 : to succeed in arriving at a place or a state

win

noun

Definition of win (Entry 2 of 2)

: victory especially : first place at the finish (as of a horse race)

Other Words from win Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More About win

Synonyms & Antonyms for win

Synonyms: Verb

Synonyms: Noun

Antonyms: Verb

lose

Antonyms: Noun

Examples of win in a Sentence

Verb The boxer won the match by knockout. He won't give up until he's won the argument. Neither candidate won the debate. We tried our best, but you can't win them all. They played well, but they didn't win. The chances of winning are 1 in 100,000. It's not about winning or losing. It's about having fun. She won a tennis trophy. Her book won the Pulitzer Prize. She won praise for her hard work. Noun a pitcher with 15 wins Their win over the first place team was unexpected.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Matt Stafford has always played the role of a pocket passer who can’t win big games. — Greg Moore, The Arizona Republic, 18 Jan. 2022 Betancourt will first have to win the centrist coalition’s primary in March. — Washington Post, 18 Jan. 2022 Miller has five sacks for a team that rebounded from a midseason three-game losing streak to win five games in a row before losing in overtime to the San Francisco 49ers in their season finale. — Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2022 During the 2021 season, Saban also became the fourth SEC coach to win 100 conference games at a single school when the Tide defeated Florida 31-29 on Sept. 18. — Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 14 Jan. 2022 The fifth team in league history to win at least a dozen games in four consecutive seasons led by the fifth coach (Andy Reid) with 250 wins, including playoffs. — Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 13 Jan. 2022 Between now and then, the Blazers will attempt to win as many games as possible to remain within striking distance of reaching the postseason. — oregonlive, 13 Jan. 2022 But failing to win the games present deadly consequences for contestants. — Dory Jackson, PEOPLE.com, 12 Jan. 2022 The kids have to win drone races to become an assistant to the lead scientist and help save the island. — Martin Dale, Variety, 11 Jan. 2022 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Also, Aaron Nesmith sat out after rolling his ankle in the fourth quarter of the win over the Pelicans Monday. — Adam Himmelsbach, BostonGlobe.com, 18 Jan. 2022 San Francisco is coming off of a thrilling 27-24 road game win in overtime over the Los Angeles Rams in Week 18, while Dallas crushed the Philadelphia Eagles on the road last week 51-26. — Analis Bailey, USA TODAY, 17 Jan. 2022 Suns starting center Deandre Ayton is ruled out for Monday's game at San Antonio (16-27) after spraining his right ankle in the first quarter of Sunday's road win over Detroit. — Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 17 Jan. 2022 This episode also includes discussion of Arkansas' blowout win over Missouri and close loss to Texas A&M. — Scottie Bordelon, Arkansas Online, 14 Jan. 2022 Metchie had 96 catches for 1,142 yards and eight touchdowns before tearing his ACL in the second quarter of the SEC title game win over Georgia. — Michael Casagrande | Mcasagrande@al.com, al, 14 Jan. 2022 The panel, led by Mr. Thompson and Vice Chairwoman Liz Cheney (R., Wyo.), is examining the storming of the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters who tried to stop the certification of President Biden’s Electoral College win. — Lindsay Wise, WSJ, 13 Jan. 2022 Maynard spent much of the Super Bowl win that was guaranteed by Namath as a decoy because of a sore leg, and didn’t catch a pass. — oregonlive, 10 Jan. 2022 Maynard spent much of the Super Bowl win that was guaranteed by Namath as a decoy because of a sore leg, and didn’t catch a pass. — Barry Wilner, ajc, 10 Jan. 2022

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'win.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for win

Verb

Middle English winnen "to strive, struggle, obtain by exertion, earn with labor, gain, triumph," going back to Old English winnan "to labor, strive," going back to a Germanic verb base *wenu̯- (whence Old Saxon winnan "to struggle, suffer, acquire," Old High German, "to labor, struggle, rage," Old Norse vinna "to labor, suffer, gain," Gothic winnan "to suffer"); akin to Sanskrit vanoti "(s/he) demands, strives for, obtains," vanate "(s/he) shall obtain," Avestan vanaiti "(s/he) defeats"

Note: According to Rix, et al., Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben (Wiesbaden, 1998), Indo-European *u̯en-, the source of these verbs is distinct from *u̯enH-, the source of Sanskrit vanate "(s/he) likes, takes pleasure in," Latin venus "physical desire, qualities exciting desire, charm" (see venus).