to overcome in a contest or competition; win a victory over to thwart or frustrate to render null and void; annul
the act of defeating or state of being defeated
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
de•feat /dɪˈfit/USA pronunciation
v. [ ~ + obj]
n.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- to overcome in a contest;
beat:He was defeated in the last election. - to frustrate;
thwart:This kind of problem always defeats me.
n.
- the act of overcoming in a contest:[uncountable]didn't accept defeat well.
- an instance of defeat;
setback:[countable]He suffered several defeats in close elections.
de•feat
(di fēt′),USA pronunciation v.t.
n.
de•feat′er, n.
- to overcome in a contest, election, battle, etc.;
prevail over;
vanquish:They defeated the enemy. She defeated her brother at tennis. - to frustrate;
thwart. - to eliminate or deprive of something expected:The early returns defeated his hopes of election.
- Lawto annul.
n.
- the act of overcoming in a contest:an overwhelming defeat of all opposition.
- an instance of defeat;
setback:He considered his defeat a personal affront. - an overthrow or overturning;
vanquishment:the defeat of a government. - a bringing to naught;
frustration:the defeat of all his hopes and dreams. - the act or event of being bested;
losing:Defeat is not something she abides easily. - [Archaic.]undoing;
destruction;
ruin.
- Medieval Latin disfacere, equivalent. to Latin dis- dis-1 + facere to do
- Anglo-French, Old French desfait, past participle of desfaire to undo, destroy
- Middle English defeten (verb, verbal) 1325–75
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged 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.See corresponding entry in Unabridged foil, baffle, balk.
- 7.See corresponding entry in Unabridged downfall.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'admit defeat' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):