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Synonyms

vanquish

American  
[vang-kwish, van-] / ˈvæŋ kwɪʃ, ˈvæn- /

verb (used with object)

  • vanquishes,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • vanquished,
    past participle,  past
  • vanquishing
    present participle
  1. to conquer or subdue by superior force, as in battle.

    Synonyms:
    quell, crush, suppress, subjugate
  2. to defeat in any contest or conflict; be victorious over.

    to vanquish one's opponent in an argument.

  3. to overcome or overpower.

    He vanquished all his fears.


vanquish British  
/ ˈvæŋkwɪʃ /

verb

  1. to defeat or overcome in a battle, contest, etc; conquer

  2. to defeat or overcome in argument or debate

  3. to conquer (an emotion)

"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

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Etymology

Origin of vanquish

1300–50; Middle English vencuschen, venquisshen < Old French vencus past participle and venquis past tense of veintre < Latin vincere to overcome

Explanation

To vanquish is to be the complete and total winner, to overpower and overcome, whether in a contest, a race, or a war. It generally suggests a total trouncing, to the point of humiliation — or worse — for the loser. Sometimes words for the same thing are effective in different ways because they offer different levels of meaning. For example, in a game, you can simply win, or you can vanquish your opponent. The former is enough, but the latter makes that defeat sound so much worse, like a total rout. Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once stated, "Against war it may be said that it makes the victor stupid and the vanquished revengeful."

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing vanquish

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:

Warsh has vowed the Fed will vanquish inflation and meet its 2% goal, but Wall Street investors have grown more doubtful.

From MarketWatch Jul. 31, 2026

Martin writes in “The Hedge Knight” that Aerion “could vanquish Ser Duncan the Tall, but not Dunk of Flea Bottom.”

From Salon Feb. 25, 2026

There is a problem, though, and it comes from the unlikelihood that OpenAI or Anthropic will ever vanquish the other.

From Slate Feb. 10, 2026

They vanquish carbon dioxide and produce oxygen, a gas of which I am very fond.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 4, 2026

ALBUS: “The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...”

From "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" by J.K. Rowling

For instance, in one scene in the Depardieu film, Cyrano duels and vanquishes a vicomte who insults his nose.

From Salon Feb. 28, 2022

“Do I have it in me?” she asks aloud with Fältskog, and in that moment, their merger vanquishes uncertainty.

From Los Angeles Times Nov. 4, 2021

The verse in Crimp’s woos and vanquishes just as seductively, though the leaner verse couples of rap battles and poetry slams.

From The Guardian Feb. 13, 2020

The only thing I didn’t like about Near Dark at the time was its ending: Caleb vanquishes Jesse and Severen and manages to reverse the vampirism afflicting him and Mae by transfusing his father’s blood.

From Slate Oct. 2, 2017

For such a Crow vanquishes without much trouble eagles, goshawks, shrikes, gerfalcons, sparrow-hawks.

From Flemish Legends by Coster, Charles de

Misinterpreting his ghostly prophecy—“Macbeth shall never vanquished be until / Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill / Shall come against him”—the usurping Scottish king believed his reign was secure.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 30, 2026

Once the slave power had been vanquished, the Reconstruction Congress sought to enshrine birthright citizenship in the Constitution so it could never be stripped away again.

From Slate Jun. 30, 2026

The people of New York vanquished him with none of the spite he has spent decades sowing, but with grace, love, and pride in their city.

From Salon Jun. 17, 2026

Iger vanquished the proxy challenge, and this week, he again defended the Fox purchase, which gave Disney control of streaming service Hulu, National Geographic channels and FX.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 4, 2026

Anthropologically speaking, the trailer park would be preferable, but here I have a gleaming white floor and a firm mattress, and the few resident bugs are easily vanquished.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich

As the play opens he is returning to Rome as a lauded hero, having led the city’s forces in vanquishing the Goths.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 1, 2026

However, once Hernán Cortés triumphed, the conquistadors went from waging war — vanquishing the Aztecs — to the project of subjugating Indigenous holdouts and building a self-sustaining territory loyal to the crown.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 23, 2026

The demand for justice for a woman resonates with Durga Puja anyway, a festival built around a goddess vanquishing evil.

From BBC Oct. 10, 2024

The combination of easing inflation and sturdy hiring and GDP growth has raised hopes the Fed can pull off a rare “soft landing” — vanquishing inflation without causing a recession.

From Seattle Times Feb. 28, 2024

He committed the United States to vanquishing the dictators who would deprive others of their freedom.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly

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