won

[ wuhn ]

/ wʌn /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR won ON THESAURUS.COM

verb

simple past tense and past participle of win¹.

RELATED WORDS

conquered

Nearby words

Can be confusedone wan won

Definition for won (2 of 5)

won

[ wuhn, woo n, wohn ]

/ wʌn, wʊn, woʊn /

verb (used without object), wonned, won·ning. Archaic.

to dwell; abide; stay.

Origin of won

before 900; Middle English wonen, Old English wunian; cognate with German wohnen; see wont

Definition for won (3 of 5)

won

[ won ]

/ wɒn /

noun, plural won.

a paper money and monetary unit of North and South Korea, equal to 100 chon.

Origin of won

1915–20; < Korean wǒn < Middle Chinese, equivalent to Chinese yuán yuan

Definition for won (4 of 5)

win

[ win ]

/ wɪn /

verb (used without object), won, win·ning.

to finish first in a race, contest, or the like.

to succeed by striving or effort: He applied for a scholarship and won.

to gain the victory; overcome an adversary: The home team won.

Slang. to be successful or competent and be acknowledged for it: My sister wins at getting the biggest bargains.Compare fail(def 9).

verb (used with object), won, win·ning.

to succeed in reaching (a place, condition, etc.), especially by great effort: They won the shore through a violent storm.

to get by effort, as through labor, competition, or conquest: He won his post after years of striving.

to gain (a prize, fame, etc.).

to be successful in (a game, battle, etc.).

to make (one's way), as by effort or ability.

to attain or reach (a point, goal, etc.).

to gain (favor, love, consent, etc.), as by qualities or influence.

to gain the favor, regard, or adherence of.

to gain the consent or support of; persuade (often followed by over): The speech won them over to our side.

to persuade to marry; gain in marriage.

British Mining.

to obtain (ore, coal, etc.).
to prepare (a vein, bed, mine, etc.) for working, by means of shafts or the like.

noun

a victory, as in a game or horse race.

the position of the competitor who comes in first in a horse race, harness race, etc.Compare place(def 27b), show(def 27).

Slang.

a success, or something good: She was having a bad week, so she really needed a win.Compare fail(def 14a).
the state or quality of being successful or good: There was so much win in last night’s episode!Compare fail(def 14b).

adjective

Slang.

successful or competent.Compare fail(def 19b).
very good or of high quality; awesome: To hear him play, now that was win!Compare fail(def 19c).

interjection

Slang. (used to acknowledge success, competence, etc.): I just got tickets to the concert. Win!

Verb Phrases

win out, to win or succeed, especially over great odds; triumph: His finer nature finally won out.

Origin of win

before 900; Middle English winnen (v.), Old English winnan to work, fight, bear; cognate with German gewinnen, Old Norse vinna, Gothic winnan

SYNONYMS FOR win

6 obtain, secure, acquire, achieve, reach, procure. See gain¹.

13 convince.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR win ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formswin·na·ble, adjective

Definition for won (5 of 5)

win

[ win ]

/ wɪn /

verb (used with object), winned, win·ning. Scot. and North England.

to dry (hay, wood, etc.) by exposure to air and sun.

Origin of win

First recorded in 1550–60; perhaps variant of winnow

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for won

In 1992, Republican George H.W. Bush won the Asian-American vote by 24 points.
Asian-Americans Are The New Florida|Tim Mak|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
No Jewish woman has been crowned Miss America since Bess Myerson won in 1945.
Why Was Bess Myerson the First and Last Jewish Miss America?|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Several Republicans won primaries in 2014 by running as ideologically pure conservatives who wanted new leadership in the House.
Kamikaze Congress Prepares to Strike Boehner|Ben Jacobs|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And keep in mind that when Huckabee ran for president in 2008, he won the Iowa caucuses.
The Devil in Mike Huckabee|Dean Obeidallah|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST

In a frightening development for the GOP, Democrats had won even traditionally Republican constituencies in the Midwest.
Thank Congress, Not LBJ for Great Society|Julian Zelizer, Scott Porch|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It was during this period of her life that she won a friendship quite as strong and quite as precious as that of old Grossetete.
The Village Rector|Honore de Balzac
The last few months of Warry's life had won him this eulogy—the work which he had done for Evelyn.
The Main Chance|Meredith Nicholson
The townsmen he owned specially as his "adversaries," but it was the rustics who were to show what a hate he had won.
History of the English People, Volume II (of 8)|John Richard Green
Claudius himself came for a brief visit to receive the congratulations of the army on the victory which his lieutenant had won.
A Student's History of England, v. 1 (of 3)|Samuel R. Gardiner.
Lastly the boy turned the magician into a sycamore tree, and won his daughter.
Custom and Myth|Andrew Lang

British Dictionary definitions for won (1 of 5)

won

/ (wʌn) /

verb

the past tense of win 1

British Dictionary definitions for won (2 of 5)

won

/ (wɒn) /

noun plural won

the standard monetary unit of North Korea, divided into 100 chon

the standard monetary unit of South Korea, divided into 100 chon

Also called: hwan

Word Origin for won

Korean wån

British Dictionary definitions for won (3 of 5)

won

/ (wʌn, wʊn, wəʊn) /

verb wons, wonning or wonned

(intr) archaic to live or dwell

Word Origin for won

Old English wunian to become accustomed to; related to win 1

British Dictionary definitions for won (4 of 5)

win

/ (wɪn) /

verb wins, winning or won

(intr) to achieve first place in a competition

(tr) to gain or receive (a prize, first place, etc) in a competition

(tr) to succeed in or gain (something) with an effortwe won recognition

win one's spurs

to achieve recognition in some field of endeavour
history to be knighted

to gain victory or triumph in (a battle, argument, etc)

(tr) to earn or procure (a living, etc) by work

(tr) to take possession of, esp violently; capturethe Germans never won Leningrad

(when intr, foll by out, through, etc) to reach with difficulty (a desired condition or position) or become free, loose, etc, with effortthe boat won the shore; the boat won through to the shore

(tr) to turn someone into (a supporter, enemy, etc)you have just won an ally

(tr) to gain (the sympathy, loyalty, etc) of someone

(tr) to obtain (a woman, etc) in marriage

(tr)

to extract (ore, coal, etc) from a mine
to extract (metal or other minerals) from ore
to discover and make (a mineral deposit) accessible for mining

you can't win informal an expression of resignation after an unsuccessful attempt to overcome difficulties

noun

informal a success, victory, or triumph

profit; winnings

the act or fact of reaching the finishing line or post first

Word Origin for win

Old English winnan; related to Old Norse vinna, German gewinnen

British Dictionary definitions for won (5 of 5)

win

/ (wɪn) /

verb wins, winning, won or winned (tr) Irish, Scot and Northern English dialect

to dry (grain, hay, peat, etc) by exposure to sun and air

a less common word for winnow

Word Origin for win

Old English, perhaps a variant of winnow

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 won (1 of 3)

won

past tense and past participle of win, from Old English gewinnen, past participle of winnan.

Word Origin and History for won (1 of 3)

win

fusion of Old English winnan "struggle for, work at, strive, fight," and gewinnan "to gain or succeed by struggling, to win," both from Proto-Germanic *wenwanan (cf. Old Saxon winnan, Old Norse vinna, Old Frisian winna, Dutch winnen "to gain, win," Danish vinde "to win," Old High German winnan "to strive, struggle, fight," German gewinnen "to gain, win," Gothic gawinnen "to suffer, toil"). Perhaps related to wish, or from PIE *van- "overcome, conquer." Related: Won; winning.

Sense of "to be victorious" is recorded from c.1300. Breadwinner preserves the sense of "toil" in Old English winnan. Phrase you can't win them all (1954) first attested in Raymond Chandler. Winningest is attested by 1804.

Word Origin and History for won (2 of 3)

win

Old English winn "labor, strife, conflict," from the source of win (v.). Modern sense of "a victory in a game or contest" is first attested 1862, from the verb.

Idioms and Phrases with won

win

In addition to the idioms beginning with win

win by a nose
wind down
wind up
wine and dine
wing it
win hands down
winning streak
win one's spurs
win on points
win out
win over
win some, lose some
win through

also see:

(win) hands down
no-win situation
slow but sure (steady wins the race)
you can't win
you can't win 'em all

won

verb

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Definition for won (2 of 5)

won

verb (used without object), wonned, won·ning. Archaic.

Origin of won

Definition for won (3 of 5)

won

noun, plural won.

Origin of won

Definition for won (4 of 5)

win

verb (used without object), won, win·ning.

verb (used with object), won, win·ning.

noun

adjective

interjection

Verb Phrases

Origin of win

Definition for won (5 of 5)

win

verb (used with object), winned, win·ning. Scot. and North England.

Origin of win

Examples from the Web for won

British Dictionary definitions for won (1 of 5)

won

verb

British Dictionary definitions for won (2 of 5)

won

noun plural won

Word Origin for won

British Dictionary definitions for won (3 of 5)

won

verb wons, wonning or wonned

Word Origin for won

British Dictionary definitions for won (4 of 5)

win

verb wins, winning or won

noun

Word Origin for win

British Dictionary definitions for won (5 of 5)

win

verb wins, winning, won or winned (tr) Irish, Scot and Northern English dialect

Word Origin for win

Word Origin and History for won (1 of 3)

won

Word Origin and History for won (1 of 3)

win

Word Origin and History for won (2 of 3)

win

Idioms and Phrases with won

win