defeat

 
Pronunciation: /dɪˈfiːt/

verb

[with object]
  • win a victory over (someone) in a battle or other contest; overcome or beat: Garibaldi defeated the Neapolitan army
  • prevent (someone) from achieving an aim: she was defeated by the last steep hill
  • prevent (an aim) from being achieved: don’t cheat by allowing your body to droop—this defeats the object of the exercise
  • reject or block (a motion or proposal): the amendment was defeated
  • be impossible for (someone) to understand: this line of reasoning defeats me, I must confess
  • Law render null and void; annul.

noun

  • an instance of defeating or being defeated: a 1-0 defeat by Grimsby [mass noun]: she had still not quite admitted defeat

Origin:

late Middle English (in the sense 'undo, destroy, annul'): from Old French desfait 'undone', past participle of desfaire, from medieval Latin disfacere 'undo'