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discomfit

[dis-kuhm-fit]
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verb (used with object)

to confuse and deject; disconcert: to be discomfited by a question.
to frustrate the plans of; thwart; foil.
Archaic. to defeat utterly; rout: The army was discomfited in every battle.

noun

Archaic. rout; defeat.

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RELATED WORDS

vex, disconcert, perplex, demoralize, prevent, discountenance, unsettle, trump, perturb, rattle, confound, abash, thwart, worry, discompose, balk, outwit, irk, checkmate, overcome

Nearby words

  1. discolor,
  2. discoloration,
  3. discolour,
  4. discombobulate,
  5. discombobulated,
  6. discomfiture,
  7. discomfort,
  8. discomfortable,
  9. discommend,
  10. discommode

Origin of discomfit

1175–1225; Middle English < Anglo-French descunfit, Old French desconfit, past participle of desconfire, equivalent to des- dis-1 + confire to make, accomplish < Latin conficere; see confect
Related formsdis·com·fit·er, nounun·dis·com·fit·ed, adjective
Can be confuseddiscomfit discomfort
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for discomfiting

British Dictionary definitions for discomfiting

discomfit

verb (tr)

to make uneasy, confused, or embarrassed
to frustrate the plans or purpose of
archaic to defeat in battle
Derived Formsdiscomfiter, noundiscomfiture, noun

Word Origin for discomfit

C14: from Old French desconfire to destroy, from des- (indicating reversal) + confire to make, from Latin conficere to produce; see confect
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 discomfiting

discomfit

v.

c.1200, as an adjective, from Old French desconfit "vanquished, defeated," past participle of desconfire "to defeat, destroy," from des- "not" (see dis-) + confire "make, prepare, accomplish," from Latin conficere (see confection).

Used as a verb in English from c.1300. Weaker sense of "disconcert" is first recorded 1520s in English, probably by confusion with discomfort. Related: Discomfited; discomfiting.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper