as in defeated
to achieve a victory over
at last she's bested her card-playing mother at the game of hearts
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Recent Examples of bested
After 31 straight games and winning $882,605 in prize money, the New Jersey native and Princeton grad was bested by Greg Shahade on the Monday, April 27, episode.
—
Gillian Telling, PEOPLE, 27 Apr. 2026
Sasha Miller surpassed 100 career goals, scoring six times while also dishing two assists as Beverly bested Masconomet 13-3 in Northeastern Conference girls lacrosse play.
—Tyler McManus, Boston Herald, 24 Apr. 2026
The Hawks have bested the Knicks in that aspect thus far.
—Fred Katz, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2026
Matt Fitzpatrick bested Scottie Scheffler in a playoff at the RBC Heritage over the weekend in what became a road game for him.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 22 Apr. 2026
Finally, Minnesota bested Denver in March, winning in Colorado in a matinee in which the Nuggets were without Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 17 Apr. 2026
As every fan points out, these players are all stupid for letting a legend as good as Cirie get this far, but please, keep getting bested by a legend.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 16 Apr. 2026
In a battle that came down to the final nine seconds of overtime — in front of a record 19,698 fans — Charlotte bested the Miami Heat, 127-126, at home.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 15 Apr. 2026
Pizza Mamma bested all the rest in the search for the top pizza.
—Kathleen Hill, The Providence Journal, 11 Apr. 2026
Gillian Telling, PEOPLE, 27 Apr. 2026
Sasha Miller surpassed 100 career goals, scoring six times while also dishing two assists as Beverly bested Masconomet 13-3 in Northeastern Conference girls lacrosse play.
—Tyler McManus, Boston Herald, 24 Apr. 2026
The Hawks have bested the Knicks in that aspect thus far.
—Fred Katz, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2026
Matt Fitzpatrick bested Scottie Scheffler in a playoff at the RBC Heritage over the weekend in what became a road game for him.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 22 Apr. 2026
Finally, Minnesota bested Denver in March, winning in Colorado in a matinee in which the Nuggets were without Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 17 Apr. 2026
As every fan points out, these players are all stupid for letting a legend as good as Cirie get this far, but please, keep getting bested by a legend.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 16 Apr. 2026
In a battle that came down to the final nine seconds of overtime — in front of a record 19,698 fans — Charlotte bested the Miami Heat, 127-126, at home.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 15 Apr. 2026
Pizza Mamma bested all the rest in the search for the top pizza.
—Kathleen Hill, The Providence Journal, 11 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bested
Verb
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Once fierce rivals, the two men were responsible for the country’s first peaceful transfer of power between parties, after Jefferson and his Democratic-Republican Party defeated Adams and the Federalists in the election of 1800.—
Jelani Cobb,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
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Disable my adblockerContinue without disabling Contact support|We're using DeVaux’s dream was realized in large part due to jockey Jose Ortiz, who defeated his own brother — who was on top of Renegade — for the win.—
Rohan Nadkarni,
NBC news,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
The central challenge is that China has mastered the entire innovation ecosystem, while the United States has allowed its own to fracture.—
Imran Khalid,
Twin Cities,
7 May 2026
-
Rival Blue Origin has only just cracked the reusable-rocket tech that Falcon mastered; SpaceX may already be moving a generation beyond it.—
Tom Chivers,
semafor.com,
7 May 2026
Verb
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The East’s top seed overcame a 3-1 series deficit and a 24-point road deficit during Game 6 in a memorable series comeback.—
Scott Phillips,
New York Times,
4 May 2026
-
Michael Massey scored on Maikel Garcia's sacrifice fly in the 10th inning, and the Kansas City Royals overcame a dominant 14-strikeout performance from Seattle starter Emerson Hancock to beat the Mariners 3-2 on Saturday night.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
3 May 2026
Verb
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Freshman midfielder Quinn Fahey scored the lone goal for the Eagles (6-5-2, 3-2), who beat Andrew for the first time since 2021.—
Steve Millar,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Led by starter Martín Pérez, the Braves started off another series with a victory by beating the Tigers 5-2 at Truist Park on Tuesday.—
Chad Bishop,
AJC.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Water has been a focus of the Newsom administration since his first day in office, when the governor took his cabinet to Monterey Park Tract, a rural Central Valley community that lacked access to safe drinking water.—
Ian James,
Los Angeles Times,
8 May 2026
-
Last Saturday, during SDFC’s rivalry match against LAFC, one fan took the message up a notch.—
Eddie Brown,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 May 2026
Verb
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With over 40 years of experience and a heritage rooted in the prestigious Valmont Clinic on the Swiss Riviera, the brand has conquered the world of skincare, combining advanced science, the purest natural ingredients from the Alps, and an unmistakable artistic sensibility.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Apr. 2026
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Admittedly, the company conquered the market in large part by achieving a dramatic reduction in launch costs.—
Ben Tarnoff,
Big Think,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Not every enterprise got past the beta stage.—
Jennifer Wilson,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
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Birmingham, led by former Orlando quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson, made enough plays to run out the clock and the Storm never got another chance.—
Chris Hays,
The Orlando Sentinel,
4 May 2026
Verb
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The student riding with Estabrook, who the choir director sent frantically driving for help, had raced to the neighboring oil refinery, where two cranes were dispatched to intervene.—
Jake Goodrick,
Sacbee.com,
9 May 2026
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Seconds later, a controller said emergency vehicles were being dispatched.—
Karina Tsui,
CNN Money,
9 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bested.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bested. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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