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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of defeats
Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 22 Apr. 2026
Al Gore defeats George W Bush to become the 42nd President of the United States.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 17 Apr. 2026
Birdville bounces back, defeats Grapevine Birdville lost 8-2 to District 6-5A frontrunner Richland on Tuesday.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2026
Behind standout efforts from Lauren Betts and Gabriela Jaquez, the UCLA women’s basketball team defeats South Carolina for the NCAA national championship.
—Marisa Ingemi, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026
Cleaning with dirty tools defeats the purpose.
—Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Kansas City Star, 30 Mar. 2026
The 49ers have gone to the playoffs in five of the past seven seasons, winning at least one game in each postseason trip, with four NFC Championship Game appearances and Super Bowl defeats in the 2019 and ’23 seasons.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2026
If Mexico defeats Italy, they are guaranteed to move on, leaving the final spot between Team USA and Italy.
—Ryan Canfield, FOXNews.com, 11 Mar. 2026
The only defeats the Raiders have this year were at the prestigious Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas just before Christmas, the second out-of-state trip the team took in December following a weekend jaunt to Arizona for a couple of games earlier in the month.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 6 Mar. 2026
Patrick Boyland, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
The back-to-back losses this weekend at Coors Field are the Dodgers’ first consecutive defeats of the season.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026
In 2006, after successive defeats in state and national elections, he was appointed the party’s propaganda secretary, a key role that helps determine the party’s public outlook and messaging.
—Andrew Pereira, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Apr. 2026
In order to reconcile this, some medieval Christians developed the idea that the defeats were a punishment for Christian sin.
—Anna Piela, The Conversation, 13 Apr. 2026
Real Madrid, Liverpool and Barcelona must all overturn first-leg defeats in this week's quarterfinals.
—ABC News, 13 Apr. 2026
Check out the vibes following defeats.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 9 Apr. 2026
Continue reading … CONSTITUTIONAL CLASH — Colorado’s latest Supreme Court loss adds to growing string of culture war defeats.
—FOXNews.com, 9 Apr. 2026
The Senate refused to act on those plans last year, one of the few defeats suffered by the MAGA right.
—Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 7 Apr. 2026
Verb
On the back of four Premier League defeats in a row and a squad pockmarked by injuries, some kind of change was required.
—Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 22 Apr. 2026
Al Gore defeats George W Bush to become the 42nd President of the United States.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 17 Apr. 2026
Birdville bounces back, defeats Grapevine Birdville lost 8-2 to District 6-5A frontrunner Richland on Tuesday.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Apr. 2026
Behind standout efforts from Lauren Betts and Gabriela Jaquez, the UCLA women’s basketball team defeats South Carolina for the NCAA national championship.
—Marisa Ingemi, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026
Cleaning with dirty tools defeats the purpose.
—Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Kansas City Star, 30 Mar. 2026
The 49ers have gone to the playoffs in five of the past seven seasons, winning at least one game in each postseason trip, with four NFC Championship Game appearances and Super Bowl defeats in the 2019 and ’23 seasons.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2026
If Mexico defeats Italy, they are guaranteed to move on, leaving the final spot between Team USA and Italy.
—Ryan Canfield, FOXNews.com, 11 Mar. 2026
The only defeats the Raiders have this year were at the prestigious Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas just before Christmas, the second out-of-state trip the team took in December following a weekend jaunt to Arizona for a couple of games earlier in the month.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 6 Mar. 2026
Noun
The team had shown signs of regression, not least in heavy defeats to Arsenal, Crystal Palace and Chelsea.
—Patrick Boyland, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
The back-to-back losses this weekend at Coors Field are the Dodgers’ first consecutive defeats of the season.
—Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026
In 2006, after successive defeats in state and national elections, he was appointed the party’s propaganda secretary, a key role that helps determine the party’s public outlook and messaging.
—Andrew Pereira, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Apr. 2026
In order to reconcile this, some medieval Christians developed the idea that the defeats were a punishment for Christian sin.
—Anna Piela, The Conversation, 13 Apr. 2026
Real Madrid, Liverpool and Barcelona must all overturn first-leg defeats in this week's quarterfinals.
—ABC News, 13 Apr. 2026
Check out the vibes following defeats.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 9 Apr. 2026
Continue reading … CONSTITUTIONAL CLASH — Colorado’s latest Supreme Court loss adds to growing string of culture war defeats.
—FOXNews.com, 9 Apr. 2026
The Senate refused to act on those plans last year, one of the few defeats suffered by the MAGA right.
—Bill McKibben, New Yorker, 7 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defeats
Verb
-
This proprietary approach overcomes challenges of surface treatment and dispersion associated with the material.—
Ameya Paleja,
Interesting Engineering,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Leo consistently overcomes challenges such as low light, rapid movement, and split second moments to produce sharp, compelling images.—
Heide Janssen,
Oc Register,
15 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Saturday’s defeat at home to Tottenham Hotspur was markedly less depressing than the losses in the previous two games.—
Steve Madeley,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Recent survey results on job losses have ticked above that percentage in the past year.—
George Petras,
USA Today,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
As the sun's core collapses, its outer layers, where nuclear fusion is still occurring, will puff out to around 100 times the original width of the sun — maybe more.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Marin stuck to her plan of staying close until a moment that changed everything with shocking swiftness — her changing her mind and going for the green on the par-5 13th for a go-ahead birdie, and Talley adding to the sad history of collapses on the back nine at the home of the Masters.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Levy masters one hilarious perplexed comedic reaction after another as Nicky, a closeted pastor with a zany, highly dysfunctional family.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The future belongs to the developer who masters the ability to break down human expertise into reusable agent skills.—
Mohith Shrivastava,
Fortune,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
There have been setbacks along the way.—
Jonathan Bullington,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
-
But noise, as well as glare, are typically buffered with vegetative landscaping and setbacks, or the distance between the property line and the nearest structure.—
Anna Clark,
ProPublica,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Yet, these authors and their peers such as Naomi Schaefer Riley continually shrink this extraordinarily complex problem to outcomes only — framing broken families in deeply dark narratives of horror, highlighting failures and demanding accountability.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Johnson said the failures cost Stephen Nolte his life.—
Judy L. Thomas,
Kansas City Star,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Robot beats elite human players at table tennis A robot beat elite human players at table tennis, a landmark victory in a competitive sport.—
Semafor Events,
semafor.com,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Take, for example, Republican James Fishback, who, according to recent polling from Keystone Analytics, beats Jolly by almost five points in a head-to-head matchup.—
Thomas C. Shank,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The answer doomed him to further beatings—but that was not the point.—
Tracy Grant,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Those who ignore or refuse the Mexican Mafia’s rules or orders are often targeted for beatings or even death.—
Sean Emery,
Oc Register,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Defeats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defeats. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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