win

1 of 2

verb

won ˈwən How to pronounce win (audio) ; winning

transitive verb

1
a
: to get possession of by effort or fortune
b
: to obtain by work : earn
striving to win a living from the sterile soil
2
a
: to gain in or as if in battle or contest
won the championship
b
: to be the victor in
won the war
3
a
: 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
4
a
: 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
winless adjective
winnable adjective

win

2 of 2

noun

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

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
Who won big and might see even more awards glory come their way soon? Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 16 Sep. 2024 Nine Kentucky straight bourbons won gold medals, and one took home the only outstanding gold award in the entire bourbon category. Hudson Lindenberger, Forbes, 16 Sep. 2024
Noun
That would be the last of their big wins, though, as significantly tougher tests were in store for them in the final knockout rounds. Neel Shelat, Forbes, 23 Sep. 2024 State of play: Darvish's nine strikeouts helped the Padres sweep the Chicago White Sox with a 4-2 win in another late-game rally in front of a sell-out crowd. Kate Murphy, Axios, 23 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for win 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'win.' 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

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).

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

1862, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of win was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near win

Cite this Entry

“Win.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/win. Accessed 4 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

win

1 of 2 verb
won ˈwən How to pronounce win (audio) ; winning
1
: to achieve victory in a contest
I always dream of winning
2
: to get especially by effort or fortune
won praise for my hard work
3
a
: to gain in or as if in battle or contest
won the championship
b
: to be the victor in
won the war
4
: to make friendly or favorable to oneself or one's cause
won the voters with her warm sense of humor

win

2 of 2 noun
: victory
especially : first place in a horse race

More from Merriam-Webster on win

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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