as in overcoming
to achieve a victory over
they defeated their archrivals easily and moved into the next round of the play-offs
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Recent Examples of defeating
Dirksen was elected to the Senate in 1950, defeating Scott Lucas, the incumbent Democrat and Senate majority leader.
—
John T. Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026
McBeth had a successful week for Saratoga, defeating her 11th-grade opponent from MacDonald High 13-1 on Tuesday.
—Christian Babcock, Mercury News, 26 Jan. 2026
Volkanovski won the vacant title in that contest, defeating Lopes via unanimous decision.
—Trent Reinsmith, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
With Maye set to play in Super Bowl LX after defeating the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game, a replacement was necessary.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 26 Jan. 2026
Lazy Susans for the Fridge Wrangling your refrigerator's contents can be frustrating at best and defeating at worst.
—Melissa Epifano, The Spruce, 26 Jan. 2026
Santa Clara has won three straight games since losing 89-77 at Gonzaga, most recently defeating the Gaels 62-54 last weekend.
—Bill Center, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Jan. 2026
The Bobcats advanced by defeating Sacred Heart 5-1 in the opening game.
—From Staff Reports, Hartford Courant, 24 Jan. 2026
Matt Bryant kicks a 49-yard field goal with 8 seconds left and the Atlanta Falcons bounce back after blowing a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter, defeating Seattle 30-28 in an NFC divisional playoff game.
—Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2026
John T. Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2026
McBeth had a successful week for Saratoga, defeating her 11th-grade opponent from MacDonald High 13-1 on Tuesday.
—Christian Babcock, Mercury News, 26 Jan. 2026
Volkanovski won the vacant title in that contest, defeating Lopes via unanimous decision.
—Trent Reinsmith, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
With Maye set to play in Super Bowl LX after defeating the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game, a replacement was necessary.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 26 Jan. 2026
Lazy Susans for the Fridge Wrangling your refrigerator's contents can be frustrating at best and defeating at worst.
—Melissa Epifano, The Spruce, 26 Jan. 2026
Santa Clara has won three straight games since losing 89-77 at Gonzaga, most recently defeating the Gaels 62-54 last weekend.
—Bill Center, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Jan. 2026
The Bobcats advanced by defeating Sacred Heart 5-1 in the opening game.
—From Staff Reports, Hartford Courant, 24 Jan. 2026
Matt Bryant kicks a 49-yard field goal with 8 seconds left and the Atlanta Falcons bounce back after blowing a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter, defeating Seattle 30-28 in an NFC divisional playoff game.
—Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defeating
Verb
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Here’s her strategy for overcoming procrastination.—
Sophie Caldwell,
CNBC,
29 Jan. 2026
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For Nayyar, overcoming user hesitancy, particularly among older generations, has been an ongoing educational process.—
Esha Chhabra,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Building the airframe has proven easier than mastering the software and sensors that allow an unmanned aircraft to find, track, and engage an enemy.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Jan. 2026
-
A lot of technical challenges followed suit in the two-years-in-the-making collection, from mastering the right scale and proportions to fine-tuning the hand-applications, pavé settings and inlays of colored stones including amethyst, tiger’s eye, mother of pearl and malachite.—
Sandra Salibian,
Footwear News,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Point Loma Nazarene’s women’s basketball team improved to 14-4 and climbed back on top of the PacWest Conference standings with a 10-2 mark after beating Azusa Pacific (80-55) and contender Vanguard (59-57) last week.—
Bill Center,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
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In the final, Black & Alshon threw down the gauntlet, beating the top pair in three straight for gold.—
Todd Boss,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The craftsman at Kaikado isn’t reinventing the tea caddy or building a world-conquering app.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
29 Jan. 2026
-
For me, that says something about my preoccupation with monsters-in-disguise and the agency of women in both uncovering and conquering violence.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Sure, some out there were robbing old people, choking people, robbing them, beating them up, taking their money, but Troy just wasn’t like that.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Ways to do that include cold showers, taking a nature walk, laughing, taking deep breaths, listening to something relaxing, or humming to yourself.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Those eight factors are eating healthy, being active, not smoking, getting high sleep quality, and managing weight, cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure.—
Lily Hautau,
CNN Money,
29 Jan. 2026
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Uhlaender, 41, won the race in skeleton, but the manipulation kept her from getting the requisite points to qualify for the upcoming Milan Cortina Winter Games.—
Steve Henson,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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After a 1-2 start, the Patriots have lost just once since September, finishing the regular season with a 14-3 record before dispatching the Los Angeles Chargers, Houston Texans and Broncos in the playoffs.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Trump has moved to change course by dispatching his border czar, Tom Homan.—
Rachel Scott,
ABC News,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The controversy began at the end of a planning and zoning meeting last Thursday, when the council member raised concerns about Border Patrol agents stopping people in the community.—
Anna McAllister,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
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States such as Minnesota should also look to civil law as a basis for stopping baleful and unlawful ICE tactics.—
Aziz Huq,
The Atlantic,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Defeating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defeating. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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