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definitions

defeat

[dih-feet]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR defeat ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

noun

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RELATED WORDS

conquistador, king, winner, hero, champion, top, queen, champ, conqueror, first, medalist, subjugator, vanquisher, victor, subduer, greatest, prizewinner

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
Related formsde·feat·er, nounnon·de·feat, nounpre·de·feat, noun, verbqua·si-de·feat·ed, adjectivere·de·feat, verb, nounun·de·feat·ed, adjectiveun·de·feat·ed·ly, adverbun·de·feat·ed·ness, noun

Synonyms for defeat

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR defeat ON THESAURUS.COM
1. overwhelm, overthrow, rout, check. 2. foil, baffle, balk. 7. downfall.

Synonym study

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.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for defeater

defeat

verb (tr)

to overcome in a contest or competition; win a victory over
to thwart or frustratethis accident has defeated all his hopes of winning
law to render null and void; annul

noun

the act of defeating or state of being defeated
an instance of defeat
overthrow or destruction
law an annulment
Derived Formsdefeater, noun

Word Origin for defeat

C14: from Old French desfait, from desfaire to undo, ruin, from des- dis- 1 + faire to do, from Latin facere
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for defeater

defeat

n.

1590s, from defeat (v.).

defeat

v.

late 14c., from Anglo-French defeter, from Old French desfait, past participle of desfaire "to undo," from Vulgar Latin *diffacere "undo, destroy," from Latin dis- "un-, not" (see dis-) + facere "to do, perform" (see factitious). Original sense was of "bring ruination, cause destruction." Military sense of "conquer" is c.1600. Related: Defeated; defeating.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper