(~s, ~ing, ~ed)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
If you ~ someone, you win a victory over them in a battle, game, or contest.
His guerrillas ~ed the colonial army in 1954...
= beat
VERB: V n
2.
If a proposal or motion in a debate is ~ed, more people vote against it than for it.
The proposal was ~ed by just one vote.
VERB: usu passive, be V-ed
3.
If a task or a problem ~s you, it is so difficult that you cannot do it or solve it.
There were times when the challenges of writing such a huge novel almost ~ed her.
VERB: V n
4.
To ~ an action or plan means to cause it to fail.
The navy played a limited but significant role in ~ing the rebellion...
= thwart
VERB: V n
5.
Defeat is the experience of being beaten in a battle, game, or contest, or of failing to achieve what you wanted to.
The most important thing is not to admit ~ until you really have to...
The vote is seen as a ~ for the anti-abortion lobby...
N-VAR