defeat
[ dih-feet ]
/ dɪˈfit /
verb (used with object)
noun
Origin of defeat
1325–75; Middle English
defeten (v.) < Anglo-French, Old French
desfait, past participle of
desfaire to undo, destroy < Medieval Latin
disfacere, equivalent to Latin
dis-
dis-1 +
facere to do
synonym study for defeat
1.
Defeat,
conquer,
overcome,
subdue imply gaining a victory or control over an opponent.
Defeat suggests beating or frustrating:
to defeat an enemy in battle.
Conquer implies finally gaining control over, usually after a series of efforts or against systematic resistance:
to conquer a country, one's inclinations.
Overcome emphasizes surmounting difficulties in prevailing over an antagonist:
to overcome opposition, bad habits.
Subdue means to conquer so completely that resistance is broken:
to subdue a rebellious spirit.
OTHER WORDS FROM defeat
Words nearby defeat
defaulter,
defcon,
defeasance,
defease,
defeasible,
defeat,
defeatism,
defeatist,
defeature,
defecate,
defect
Example sentences from the Web for defeated
British Dictionary definitions for defeated
defeat
/ (dɪˈfiːt) /
verb (tr)
to overcome in a contest or competition; win a victory over
to thwart or frustrate
this accident has defeated all his hopes of winning
law
to render null and void; annul
noun
Derived forms of defeat
defeater, nounWord Origin for defeat
C14: from Old French
desfait, from
desfaire to undo, ruin, from
des-
dis-
1 +
faire to do, from Latin
facere