de·feat
(dĭ-fēt́)
[Middle English defeten, from defet, disfigured, from Old French desfait past participle of desfaire, to destroy, from Medieval Latin disfacere, to destroy, mutilate, undo, Latin dis-, dis-, + Latin facere, to do.]
transitive verb: -feat·ed, -feat·ing, -feats.
- To win victory over; beat.
- To prevent the success of; thwart: Internal strife defeats the purpose of teamwork.
- Law To make void; annul.
noun
- The act of defeating or state of being defeated.
- Failure to win.
- A coming to naught; frustration: the defeat of a lifelong dream.
- Law The act of making null and void.
derivatives
- de·feat́er
- noun
synonyms:
defeat, conquer, vanquish, beat, rout1subdue, subjugate, overcome These verbs mean to triumph over an adversary. Defeat is the most general: “Whether we defeat the enemy in one battle, or by degrees, the consequences will be the same” (Thomas Paine) Conquer suggests decisive and often wide-scale victory: “The Franks . . . having conquered the Gauls, established the kingdom which has taken its name from them” (Alexander Hamilton) Vanquish emphasizes total mastery: Napoleon's forces were vanquished at Waterloo. Beat is similar to defeat, though less formal and often more emphatic: “To win battles . . . you beat the soul . . . of the enemy man” (George S. Patton) Rout implies complete victory followed by the disorderly flight of the defeated force: The enemy was routed in the first battle. Subdue suggests mastery and control achieved by overpowering: “It cost two great wars, and three great battles, to subdue that little kingdom (Adam Smith) Subjugate more strongly implies reducing an opponent to submission: “The last foreigner to subjugate England was a Norman duke in the Middle Ages named William” (Stanley Meisler) To overcome is to prevail over, often by persevering: He overcame his injury after months of physical therapy.
