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Definition of "defeat" []

  • To win victory over; beat. (verb-transitive)
  • To prevent the success of; thwart: Internal strife defeats the purpose of teamwork. (verb-transitive)
  • Law To make void; annul. (verb-transitive)
  • The act of defeating or state of being defeated. (noun)
  • Failure to win. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "defeat" in a sentence
  • "The fact that so many evangelicals would rather see the recent HCR legislation, with its guarantee of ending the onerous “pre-existing condition” stuff, go down in defeat is a crisp and clear comment on the utter moral depravity of evangelicalism."
  • "Usually, what local parties do when certain defeat is in the offing is find some young up and comer and promise him or her the moon down the road in exchange for going down with the ship this time out."
  • "What is really meant by the term defeat in the parlance of conventional military aims when facing a shadowy global terrorist network?"