conquest
noun
the act or state of conquering or the state of being conquered; vanquishment.
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conquest
American
[kon-kwest, kong-]
/ ˈkɒn kwɛst, ˈkɒŋ- /
noun
-
conquests
plural
-
the act or state of conquering or the state of being conquered; vanquishment.
- Synonyms:
- mastery, defeat, subjugation
- Antonyms:
- surrender
-
the winning of favor, affection, love, etc..
the conquest of Antony by Cleopatra.
- Synonyms:
- enchantment, seduction
-
a person whose favor, affection, etc., has been won.
He's another one of her conquests.
-
anything acquired by conquering, as a nation, a territory, or spoils.
-
the Conquest. Norman Conquest.
conquest
1
British
/ ˈkɒnkwɛst, ˈkɒŋ- /
noun
-
the act or an instance of conquering or the state of having been conquered; victory
-
a person, thing, etc, that has been conquered or won
-
the act or art of gaining a person's compliance, love, etc, by seduction or force of personality
-
a person, whose compliance, love, etc, has been won over by seduction or force of personality
Conquest
2
British
/ ˈkɒnkwɛst, ˈkɒŋ- /
noun
-
See Norman Conquest
-
the conquest by the United Kingdom of French North America, ending in 1763
Synonym Usage
See victory.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of conquest
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English conqueste, from Anglo-French, Old French, from unattested Vulgar Latin conquēsta (for Latin conquīsīta, feminine past participle of conquīrere ). See con-, quest
Explanation
Alexander the Great's famous conquest of the Persian Empire was an act of conquering. For Casanova, on the other hand, a conquest was an act of seduction. Conquest derives from the Vulgar Latin word conquaerere, meaning "to search for, procure by effort, or win." In addition to its most commonly used meanings — conquering and seduction — conquest has a third, less well-known meaning: a success in mastering something difficult, like the violin, for instance, or flying an airplane.
Vocabulary lists containing conquest
"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act II
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"Remarks at the Dedication of the Aerospace Medical Health Center," Vocabulary from the speech
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The Middle East and Central Asia - Introductory
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The Iberian conquest of the Americas made 16th-century Seville the richest city in Europe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Before we do a “House of the Dragon” flyby to examine its place in high fantasy’s conquest of TV and film, let’s talk about Sheepstealer.
From Salon ● Jun. 24, 2026
The comet became one of the most famous symbols associated with the year 1066 and even appears in the Bayeux Tapestry, the medieval artwork depicting the Norman conquest of England.
From Science Daily ● May 13, 2026
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has said there was "no diplomatic crisis" with Spain after years of frosty relations over the conquest of the North American nation.
From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2026
Their status as precursors led archaeologists to believe that the subsequent emergence of other complex societies was due to their example—or their conquest.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Seen in this wider context, the Norman Conquest was not simply a contest over the English crown.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 11, 2026
The siege is the subject of Anthony Kaldellis’s “1453: The Conquest and Tragedy of Constantinople.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
The artwork, which chronicles scenes from the 1066 Battle of Hastings and the start of the Norman Conquest of England, was held in a shock-proof and temperature controlled case to protect the delicate embroidery.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
The Norman Conquest changed everything, reshaping the country entirely.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
Conversely, British troops have fought on the continent in every century since the Norman Conquest of A.D.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
“The Spartans’ stubborn refusal to share their wealth and conquests with other Greeks limited their potential to grow,” he writes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 25, 2026
The Al-Bass site is centred on a necropolis that dates back three millennia to Tyre's time as a major Phoenician city and was still in use until the Arab conquests of the 7h Century.
From Barron's ● Mar. 24, 2026
But though these art objects carry the weight of centuries of defeats and conquests, they can’t alone engender a cultural identity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2024
From 1815 to 1914, London presided over an expanding global system marked by industry, capital exports and colonial conquests, all spurred by the integration of the planet via railroad, steamship, telegraph and ultimately radio.
From Salon ● Sep. 20, 2024
Atahuallpa remained entirely ignorant about Spain’s conquests of Central America’s most powerful and populous Indian societies.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
