defeat

/dɪˈfiːt/

//dɪˈfiːt// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"defeat" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“defeat” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,939. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,939
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
14
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To overcome in battle or contest.

Corpus desk

Index EN-defeat · defeat · English

defeat · rank #2,939 · 8 variants · 14 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,939
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 14 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH dan

Nearest frequency peer: dan (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “defeat”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “defeat” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

defeat vs deft
67% similar
defeat vs defer
67% similar
defeat vs defend
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for defeat
PropertyValue
Headworddefeat
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dɪˈfiːt/
Letters6
Frequency rank#2,939
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs14
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “defeat”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).defeatlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “dan” (#2,938), “defence” (#2,940), “covers” (#2,937). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “defeat” is #2,939. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around defeat (IPA /dɪˈfiːt/), averb. Corpus frequency is #2,939 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for defeat, with forms such as "ddefeat", "deefat", and "defaet". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 14 confusable-pair relationships, "deft", "defer", "defend", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English defeten, from Middle English defet (“disfigured”, past participle) and defet (“defect”, noun), see Etymology 2 below. The correct English form is defeat, spelled D-E-F-E-A-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    To overcome in battle or contest.
  2. 2
    To reduce, to nothing, the strength of.
  3. 3
    To nullify
  4. 4
    To prevent (something) from being achieved.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how defeat appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Wellington defeated Napoleon at Waterloo.
  2. The Japanese defeated the Ming general Tsu Chʻeng-hsün 祖承訓 at Pʻing jang 平壤 in 1592, the first year of Bunroku 文祿 of Japan, and the fighting continued for some years; but at Hideyoshi's death the Japanese troops left Korea.

Etymology

From Middle English defeten, from Middle English defet (“disfigured”, past participle) and defet (“defect”, noun), see Etymology 2 below.

Synonyms

vanquishovercomebeatbring downconvincechew upeat someone for breakfasteat someone's lunchfloghumblekick assmalavoguemurdelizeoutfoxoutguessoutrunoutsmartoutwitoverpoweroverwinownpulverisepwnrapereducespanksteal the showsubduesubvertsurmountthrashtrounce

Antonyms

bite the dustcapitulateeat someone's dustforfeitgive uplosestrike one's flagsurrenderrelinquishwave the white flagyield

This word in other languages

derrotar(Español)vaincre(Français)schlagen(Deutsch)derrotar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddefeat
  • deefat
  • defaet
  • defeatt
  • defeta
  • deffeat
  • dfeeat
  • edfeat

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of defeat - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ddefeat1deefat2defaet2defeatt1defeta2deffeat1dfeeat2edfeat2
Edit distance from "defeat"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "defeat"?
"defeat" is spelled D-E-F-E-A-T. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪˈfiːt/.
What does "defeat" mean?
As a verb, "defeat" means: To overcome in battle or contest.
What words are commonly confused with "defeat"?
"defeat" is commonly confused with "deft", "defer", "defend". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "defeat"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "defeat" is /dɪˈfiːt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "defeat"?
From Middle English defeten, from Middle English defet (“disfigured”, past participle) and defet (“defect”, noun), see Etymology 2 below. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "defeat", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

covers#2,937comedy#2,934campus#2,928Jordan#2,950

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

clubs8 variantskinds8 variantsthats8 variantsopposed8 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list