defeat

1 of 2

verb

de·​feat di-ˈfēt 

dē-

defeated; defeating; defeats

transitive verb

1

: to win victory over : beat

defeated their archrivals in the championship game

The bill was defeated in the Senate.

2

a

: frustrate sense 2a(1)

defeat a hope

b

law : nullify

defeat an estate

3

obsolete : destroy

… his unkindness may defeat my life …

—Shakespeare

defeatable

di-ˈfē-tə-bəl 

dē-

adjective

defeat

2 of 2

noun

1

: frustration by nullification or by prevention of success

The bill suffered defeat in the Senate.

2

a

: an overthrow especially of an army in battle

celebrate their defeat of the enemy

b

: the loss of a contest

his first defeat as a professional boxer

3

obsolete : destruction

… upon whose property and most dear life a damned defeat was made.

—Shakespeare

Synonyms

Verb

• beat
• best
• conquer
• dispatch
• do down [British]
• get
• get around
• lick
• master
• overbear
• overcome
• overmatch
• prevail (over)
• skunk
• stop
• subdue
• surmount
• take
• trim
• triumph (over)
• upend
• win (against)
• worst

Noun

• beating
• drubbing
• licking
• loss
• lump
• overthrow
• plastering
• rout
• shellacking
• trimming
• trouncing
• whipping

Choose the Right Synonym for defeat

conquer, vanquish, defeat, subdue, reduce, overcome, overthrow mean to get the better of by force or strategy.

conquer implies gaining mastery of.

Caesar conquered Gaul

vanquish implies a complete overpowering.

vanquished the enemy and ended the war

defeat does not imply the finality or completeness of vanquish which it otherwise equals.

the Confederates defeated the Union forces at Manassas

subdue implies a defeating and suppression.

subdued the native tribes after years of fighting

reduce implies a forcing to capitulate or surrender.

the city was reduced after a month-long siege

overcome suggests getting the better of with difficulty or after hard struggle.

overcame a host of bureaucratic roadblocks

overthrow stresses the bringing down or destruction of existing power.

violently overthrew the old regime

Examples of defeat in a Sentence

Verb

We must be ready to defeat our enemies in battle.

Our candidate defeated him in the last election.

She finally found a solution to a problem that had defeated many other researchers.

The bill was defeated in the state senate.

Scientists from around the world are working to defeat the disease.

Noun

We weren't prepared for defeat.

One small error could make the difference between success and defeat.

After several tries we were forced to accept defeat.

They celebrated their defeat of the enemy.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The Pirates, the fourth seed out of District 5-5A, defeated 6-5A top seed South Hills 9-0 on Wednesday night. —Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 Apr. 2024

In Round One, the top heavy tree swallow defeated the chonky Canada warbler, 55%-45%. —Jessie Opoien, Journal Sentinel, 25 Apr. 2024

Inside the 305 Heat shocks Celtics in Game 2 to even series at 1-1 behind historic three-point shooting display On Wednesday, the Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics 111-101 and tied the first-round playoff series to 1-1. —Camellia Burris, Miami Herald, 25 Apr. 2024

The shortstop went 4 for 4 with a career-high five RBI as the University of Arkansas defeated the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff 11-1 in seven innings Tuesday night in front of a crowd of 9,293 at the North Little Rock ballpark. —Sam Lane, arkansasonline.com, 24 Apr. 2024

Yes, she was defeated by a swarm of bees and then received a kicking from Wednesday at the end of the last season, but her death was never confirmed. —Radhika Seth, Vogue, 24 Apr. 2024

Trump narrowly defeated his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton in that close race despite losing the popular vote by 2.9 million votes. —Josh Meyer, USA TODAY, 22 Apr. 2024

Maroney pointed out one industry group, Consumer Technology Association, has taken out ads and built a website, urging lawmakers to defeat the legislation. —Jesse Bedayn, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024

The five-time champion spent the rest of the day struggling to his worst round at a major championship, a 10-over 82 that left Woods looking not only defeated but will force him to play his 100th round at the Masters on Sunday well out of the spotlight. —Dave Skretta, The Denver Post, 14 Apr. 2024

Noun

The hard truth is that the five who preceded Johnson (McCarthy, Paul Ryan, John Boehner, Dennis Hastert and Newt Gingrich) all saw their time in the office end in relative degrees of defeat or frustration. —Ron Elving, NPR, 27 Apr. 2024

Phillips, the former chair of the Talenti gelato empire, suspended his longshot bid against Biden in early March after suffering a string of double-digit defeats. —Karissa Waddick, USA TODAY, 24 Apr. 2024

President Joe Biden won Wisconsin by about 21,000 votes in 2020, a defeat that was key to Trump's reelection loss that year. —Jessie Opoien, Journal Sentinel, 22 Apr. 2024

Alexandar Georgiev allowed seven goals on 23 shots, and a fast start by Colorado quickly faded under the weight of an avalanche of goals against in a 7-6 defeat Sunday night at Canada Life Centre. —Corey Masisak, The Denver Post, 21 Apr. 2024

An outright dismissal of House Republicans' prosecution of Mayorkas, with no chance to argue the case, is an embarrassing defeat for House Republicans and embattled House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who made the impeachment a priority. —Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 18 Apr. 2024

In choosing Ukraine over Russia, Johnson has taken a real stand—one that may allow Ukraine to avoid, for now, the defeat that would surely come from the U.S. withdrawing its support. —Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2024

Instead, Leverkusen has become almost synonymous with agonizing defeat. —Christopher F. Schuetze, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2024

By nightfall, her hopes had come true; the River Cats stormed back to clinch a 10-9 victory over the Chihuahuas — a fitting comeback for a city with much bigger sports dreams, where giving up on a team is the only sign of defeat. —Shomik Mukherjee, The Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English defeten, defaiten "to ruin, destroy, nullify," in part verbal derivative of defet "disfigured, null and void (in law)," borrowed from Anglo-French defait, defet, desfet, past participle of defaire, desfaire "to undo, put an end to, destroy, nullify," from de-, des- de- + faire "to do, make," going back to Latin facere; in part borrowed from Anglo-French defeter, derivative of defet — more at fact

Noun

in part noun derivative of defeat entry 1, in part borrowed from Middle French defaite, noun derivative from feminine of defait, past participle of defaire, desfaire "to undo, destroy, kill" — more at defeat entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Noun

1581, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing defeat

• admit defeat
• concede defeat
• defeat the purpose of
• go down to defeat
• in defeat
• the jaws of defeat

Kids Definition

defeat

1 of 2 verb

de·​feat di-ˈfēt 

1

: to destroy the value or effect of

the lawyers defeated the will

2

: to win a victory over

defeated their team

defeatable

-ˈfēt-ə-bəl 

adjective

defeat

2 of 2 noun

1

: the act or an instance of making ineffective by prevention of success

the bill suffered defeat by Congress

the defeat of one's hopes

2

a

: an overthrow of an army in battle

b

: loss of a contest (as by a team)

Legal Definition

defeat

transitive verb

de·​feat

1

a

: to render null

third parties will defeat an attached but “unperfected” security interest

—J. J. White and R. S. Summers

b

: to prevent or undo the effectiveness or establishment of

defeat jurisdiction

defendant took stand and defeated intoxication defense

—National Law Journal

2

a

: to prevail over

b

: to thwart the claim of

defeat creditors

an intent to defeat the surviving spouse of his…elective share

—Tennessee Code Annotated

defeat noun

Etymology

Transitive verb

Anglo-French defait, past participle of defaire to undo, defeat, from Old French deffaire desfaire, from de-, prefix marking reversal of action + faire to do