defeat

defeat
—defeater, n.
/di feet"/, v.t.
1. to overcome in a contest, election, battle, etc.; prevail over; vanquish: They defeated the enemy. She defeated her brother at tennis.
2. to frustrate; thwart.
3. to eliminate or deprive of something expected: The early returns defeated his hopes of election.
4. Law. to annul.
n.
5. the act of overcoming in a contest: an overwhelming defeat of all opposition.
6. an instance of defeat; setback: He considered his defeat a personal affront.
7. an overthrow or overturning; vanquishment: the defeat of a government.
8. a bringing to naught; frustration: the defeat of all his hopes and dreams.
9. the act or event of being bested; losing: Defeat is not something she abides easily.
10. Archaic. undoing; destruction; ruin.
[1325-75; ME defeten (v.) < AF, OF desfait, ptp. of desfaire to undo, destroy < ML disfacere, equiv. to L dis- DIS-1 + facere to do]
Syn. 1. overwhelm, overthrow, rout, check. 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. 2. foil, baffle, balk. 7. downfall.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • defeat — de·feat vt [Anglo French defait, past participle of defaire to undo, defeat, from Old French deffaire desfaire, from de , prefix marking reversal of action + faire to do] 1 a: to render null third parties will defeat an attached but “unperfected” …   Law dictionary

  • Defeat — De*feat , v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Defeated}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Defeating}.] [From F. d[ e]fait, OF. desfait, p. p. ofe d[ e]faire, OF. desfaire, to undo; L. dis + facere to do. See {Feat}, {Fact}, and cf. {Disfashion}.] 1. To undo; to disfigure; to… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • defeat — [n1] overthrow, beating ambush, annihilation, beating, blow, break, breakdown, check, collapse, conquest, count, debacle, defeasance, destruction, discomfiture, downthrow, drubbing*, embarrassment, extermination, failure, fall, insuccess,… …   New thesaurus

  • Defeat — De*feat , n. [Cf. F. d[ e]faite, fr. d[ e]faire. See {Defeat}, v.] 1. An undoing or annulling; destruction. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] Upon whose property and most dear life A damned defeat was made. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. Frustration by rendering… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Defeat — may be the opposite of victory Debellatio Surrender (military) usually follows a defeat Defeat, piece by a boy (pseudonym Chris Hughes Davis, real name unknown). See also Defeatism Failure List of military disasters …   Wikipedia

  • defeat — (v.) late 14c., from Anglo Fr. defeter, from O.Fr. desfait, pp. of desfaire to undo, from V.L. *diffacere undo, destroy, from L. dis un , not (see DIS (Cf. dis )) + facere to do, perform (see FACTITIOUS (Cf …   Etymology dictionary

  • defeat — vb beat, *conquer, vanquish, lick, subdue, subjugate, reduce, overcome, surmount, overthrow, rout Analogous words: *frustrate, thwart, foil, baffle, balk, circumvent, outwit deep rooted, Contrasted words: *yield, submit, capitulate, succumb, cave …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • defeat — ► VERB 1) win a victory over. 2) prevent from achieving an aim or prevent (an aim) from being achieved. 3) reject or block (a proposal or motion). ► NOUN ▪ an instance of defeating or the state of being defeated. ORIGIN Old French desfaire, from… …   English terms dictionary

  • defeat — [dē fēt′, difēt′] vt. [ME defeten < defet, disfigured, null and void < OFr desfait, pp. of desfaire, to undo < ML disfacere, to deface, ruin < L dis , from + facere, to DO1] 1. to win victory over; overcome; beat 2. to bring to… …   English World dictionary

  • defeat — {{Roman}}I.{{/Roman}} noun ADJECTIVE ▪ complete, comprehensive (esp. BrE), decisive, heavy, major, overwhelming, resounding, serious, stunning, total …   Collocations dictionary

  • defeat — de|feat1 W3 [dıˈfi:t] n [U and C] 1.) failure to win or succeed ▪ She was a woman who hated to admit defeat . ▪ The Democratic Party candidate has already conceded defeat . defeat in ▪ The socialist party suffered a crushing defeat in the French… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

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