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| Date: | 1300-1400 |
| Language: | Anglo-French |
| Origin: | defeter 'to destroy', from Medieval Latin disfacere, from Latin facere 'to do' |
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defeat2 [transitive]
1 to win a victory over someone in a war, competition, game etc [= beat]: 
They hoped to defeat the enemy at sea.
They hoped to defeat the enemy at sea.2 if something defeats you, you cannot understand it and therefore cannot answer or deal with it [= beat]: It was the last question on the paper that defeated me.
It was the last question on the paper that defeated me.3 to make something fail
defeat the object/purpose (of the exercise) Don't let your arms relax as that would defeat the object of the exercise.
Don't let your arms relax as that would defeat the object of the exercise.
