How to Use defeat in a Sentence
- The bill was defeated in the state senate.
- Scientists from around the world are working to defeat the disease.
- We must be ready to defeat our enemies in battle.
- Our candidate defeated him in the last election.
- She finally found a solution to a problem that had defeated many other researchers.
-
Breakker with help defeats Rollins.
—
Darren Cooper,
Forbes.com,
26 June 2026
-
This pro-social swarm tries to defeat the evil swarm.
—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
All of this is a game of chess to defeat Porsha.
—
Ile-Ife Okantah,
Vulture,
29 June 2026
-
And that defeats the entire purpose of the change.
—
Zak Doffman,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
-
To defeat Susan Collins and turn this seat blue again.
—
Jay Stahl,
USA Today,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Notre Dame defeated the Hoosiers in the first round.
—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
10 Jan. 2026
-
They are not always defeated head-on.
—
Ed Gaskin,
Boston Herald,
30 May 2026
-
Justin slumped on the couch looking defeated.
—
Kavitha Surana,
CNN Money,
28 May 2026
-
It was defeated in a 53 to 47 vote.
—
Caitlin Yilek,
CBS News,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Without a pole, hook, or tree to climb, squirrels are left defeated and bereft.
—
Stephanie Osmanski,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 July 2026
-
Which does not mean to be defeated by suffering.
—
Stephanie Kaloi,
PEOPLE,
21 May 2026
-
The Sox went on to defeat the Blue Jays 6-3.
—
Lamond Pope,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The spirits of the three boys then help to defeat the Grabber and he's sent back to the abyss.
—
Megan McCluskey,
Time,
18 Oct. 2025
-
That play sent the game to overtime, where the Heat defeated the Spurs.
—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Committees can approve, defeat or amend a bill.
—
Howard Cohen,
Miami Herald,
12 Jan. 2026
-
That was the last time the Knicks have been defeated this postseason.
—
Shakeia Taylor,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
-
Abbott book-ended his speech with talk of defeating Democrats in the fall.
—
Eleanor Dearman,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 June 2026
-
If the bill is defeated in the committee process, that’s it, the bill is dead for the rest of session.
—
Howard Cohen,
Miami Herald,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Simpson defeated Smith by more than 21% of the vote.
—
Kevin Fixler
june 4,
Idaho Statesman,
4 June 2026
-
The bill needs 60 votes to pass, but it was defeated in a 54-45 vote.
—
Cailey Gleeson,
jsonline.com,
29 Oct. 2025
-
That match was won by Jey Uso, who went on to defeat Bron Breakker for the gold.
—
Fernando Quiles Jr,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Of course, this is a fun exercise that also defeats the entire purpose.
—
Walden Green,
Pitchfork,
12 June 2026
-
Allen advanced by defeating Idaho in five games.
—
Pj Green,
Kansas City Star,
8 May 2026
-
Trump has said Iran has been thoroughly defeated, but has not given an end date for the war.
—
Kinsey Crowley,
USA Today,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Iraqi Kurds and Iraqi forces helped defeat the militant group in Iraq.
—
Jane Arraf,
NPR,
2 May 2026
- We weren't prepared for defeat.
- One small error could make the difference between success and defeat.
- After several tries we were forced to accept defeat.
- They celebrated their defeat of the enemy.
-
The defeat was the Hawks’ fourth in five games.
—
Kalen Lumpkins,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Jan. 2026
-
Five of those six defeats have been by a single goal.
—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Ceding that to the left or right or would mean defeat.
—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
The defeat at first did him little harm.
—
Literary Hub,
20 May 2026
-
So the quest for defeat against an unwinnable force.
—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Feb. 2026
-
For him, handling defeat is part of the job.
—
Alejandro Avila Outkick,
FOXNews.com,
16 June 2026
-
Don't dress up your defeat as an agreement.
—
Npr Staff,
NPR,
25 Mar. 2026
-
That need is even greater after this defeat.
—
Beren Cross,
New York Times,
19 Oct. 2025
-
The defeat should leave a bitter taste.
—
Eric Stephens,
New York Times,
15 May 2026
-
But with any defeat in stoppage time comes a sense of what could have been.
—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
3 July 2026
-
That was their most recent defeat.
—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Their six defeats were no-doubters, and none came in back-to-back fashion.
—
Cam Inman,
Mercury News,
23 Jan. 2026
-
The defeats have been stinging.
—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
15 May 2026
-
Nobody likes to lose, but one defeat and a draw are no longer fatal.
—
Filip Bondy,
New York Daily News,
10 June 2026
-
Days when little things going awry added up to defeat.
—
Alex Kalinauckas,
New York Times,
4 May 2026
-
Three of the defeats have come either in overtime or in a shootout.
—
Ivan Carter,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Mar. 2026
-
Madrid suffered its third defeat in its last six league matches.
—
ABC News,
4 Apr. 2026
-
That's not to say this defeat to a major play-off rival didn't hurt.
—
Richard Sutcliffe,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2026
-
The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.
—
Staff Photographer,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Loons lost 2-1 as part of four straight defeats to begin the year.
—
Andy Greder,
Twin Cities,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Seven defeats came by 31 points or more.
—
Mitch Sherman,
New York Times,
8 Sep. 2025
-
The defeat snapped a five-game winning streak for the pinstripers.
—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
7 May 2026
-
For Iran, the defeat is subtler.
—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
18 June 2026
-
One more defeat would match the Nets’ season-worst skid that opened the year.
—
C.j. Holmes,
New York Daily News,
27 Feb. 2026
-
The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat.
—
Cam Inman,
Mercury News,
11 Jan. 2026
-
But their 11 away defeats were telling; no side in the top-16 lost more.
—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
11 Feb. 2026
Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'defeat.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Last Updated:
