Synonyms of defeats

defeats 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of defeat

as in overcomes

to achieve a victory over

they defeated their archrivals easily and moved into the next round of the play-offs

Synonyms & Similar Words

• overcomes
• masters
• beats
• conquers
• takes
• gets
• dispatches
• subdues
• stops
• surmounts
• succeeds
• upends
• bests
• overmatches
• wins (against)
• triumphs (over)
• overbears
• prevails (over)
• worsts
• gets the better of
• licks
• does down
• gets around
• buries
• trims
• overwhelms
• finishes
• crushes
• slaughters
• sweeps
• surpasses
• upsets
• skunks
• scores
• routs
• knocks for a loop
• annihilates
• drubs
• vanquishes
• exceeds
• excels
• trounces
• flattens
• clobbers
• blows out
• bombs
• thrashes
• edges (out)
• overthrows
• blows away
• overpowers
• subjugates
• whips
• wallops
• noses out
• transcends
• breaks
• flourishes
• caps
• tops
• unseats
• eclipses
• outshines
• outdistances
• knocks over
• smokes
• pips
• outdoes
• skins
• knocks off
• creams
• shellacs
• outstrips
• waxes
• snows under
• overtops
• outfights
• betters
• aces (out)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• loses (to)
• falls
• goes down
• fails
• collapses
• goes under
• gives up
• folds
• flops
• washes out
• flunks

defeats

2 of 2

noun

plural of defeat

1

as in losses

failure to win a contest

sore losers still griping about their defeat in the basketball game earlier that week

Synonyms & Similar Words

• losses
• setbacks
• beatings
• routs
• overthrows
• drubbings
• failures
• trimmings
• whippings
• lickings
• collapses
• upsets
• shellackings
• plasterings
• shutouts
• flops
• lumps
• fiascoes
• debacles
• fizzles
• washouts
• lurches
• nonsuccesses
• whitewashes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• victories
• wins
• successes
• triumphs
• achievements
• accomplishments
• sweeps
• landslides
• blowouts
• runaways
• romps
• cakewalks
• walkovers
• walkaways

2

as in collapses

a falling short of one's goals

truly disheartened by the defeat of his plans to revitalize downtown

Synonyms & Similar Words

• collapses
• failures
• crashes
• setbacks
• fizzles
• disappointments
• croppers
• futilities
• nonsuccesses
• deficiencies
• nonachievements
• inadequacies
• letdowns
• insufficiencies
• inefficacies
• ineffectualities

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• achievements
• successes
• accomplishments
• victories
• wins

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of defeats

Verb

In a second-round match, Sargis Sargsian defeats Nicolas Massu, 6-7 (8), 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4, in five hours and nine minutes. — Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026

However, if Merab Dvalishvili defeats Petr Yan at UFC 333, then Song might have a better case than O'Malley considering Merab has beaten Sean twice. — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026

Wolf rescues Kuro, but as the two make their escape, they are intercepted by Genichiro, who defeats Wolf in combat, cuts off his left arm, and kidnaps Kuro again. — Aman Kumar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Aug. 2026

If the opposition defeats the ballot measure in November, billionaires will avoid that liability. — Mia Osmonbekov, Fortune, 18 Aug. 2026

Seven Democratic incumbents have lost their primaries so far, already tying with 2012 for the most Democratic House incumbent defeats this century. — Chad De Guzman, Time, 14 Aug. 2026

The player whose monster army defeats the most babies wins the game. — Bestreviews, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2026

Gonzales says leaving excess hair in your catcher defeats the point of using one. — Maria Sabella, The Spruce, 4 Aug. 2026

Kylian Mbappé held scoreless as Spain defeats France in World Cup semi. — Alex Connor, USA Today, 15 July 2026

Noun

Across a run of six defeats in seven matches, which left his tenure hanging by a thread, the Forest and Brighton losses were the worst. — Beren Cross, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026

Trump may be fighting the ‘lame duck’ factor Second-term presidents typically see their power and influence wane during their last two years, particularly if their party suffers big midterm defeats. — Will Weissert, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026

Second-term presidents typically see their power and influence wane during their last two years, particularly if their party suffers big midterm defeats. — ABC News, 31 Aug. 2026

This move follows recent court defeats for the department after rules to limit PSLF were struck down, raising concerns about the broader impact on public service workers. — Adam S. Minsky, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

Meta has suffered two major defeats in state courts this year and been ordered to pay almost $1 billion in penalties and remediation for harms to teens who used platforms such as Instagram. — Gerrit De Vynck, Washington Post, 17 Aug. 2026

In taking the loss, Roupp is tied with the Baltimore Orioles’ Shane Baz and the Cleveland Guardians’ Tanner Bibee for the most defeats (12) in the majors. — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 15 Aug. 2026