defeat

Plural: defeats

Noun

• an unsuccessful ending to a struggle or contest
  • "it was a narrow defeat"
  • "the army's only defeat"
• the feeling that accompanies an experience of being thwarted in attaining your goals
• The act or instance of being defeated, of being overcome or vanquished; a loss.
• The act or instance of defeating, of overcoming, vanquishing.
• Frustration (by prevention of success), stymieing; (law) nullification.
• Destruction, ruin.

Verb

Verb Forms: defeated, defeating, defeats

• To win a victory over an opponent.
• win a victory over
  • "defeat your enemies"
• thwart the passage of
• To overcome in battle or contest.
• To reduce, to nothing, the strength of.
• To nullify
• To prevent (something) from being achieved.

Examples

• His goal was to defeat his rival using a string of strategic, high-scoring words.
• Licking their wounds after a temporary defeat, they planned their next move.
• The inscription records her defeat of the country's enemies in a costly war.
• Wellington defeated Napoleon at Waterloo.

Synonyms

frustration, get the better of, kill, licking, overcome, shoot down, vote down, vote out, beat, bring down, chew up, eat someone for breakfast, eat someone's lunch, humble, kick ass, murdelize, outfox, outguess, outrun, outsmart, outwit, overpower, overwin, own, pulverise, pwn, spank, steal the show, subdue, subvert, surmount, thrash, trounce, vanquish

Antonyms

victory, bite the dust, capitulate, eat someone's dust, forfeit, give up, lose, relinquish, strike one's flag, surrender, wave the white flag, yield

Related Words

defeasance, defeasible, defeater, defeatism, defeatist, defeature