Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A defeat of an enemy or opponent.
  • noun A success in a struggle against difficulties or an obstacle.
  • noun The state or fact of having defeated an opponent or of having achieved success.
  • noun Exultation or celebration at defeating an opponent or accomplishing something.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The defeat or overcoming of an antagonist in a contest or an enemy in battle; triumph.
  • noun The advantage or superiority gained in any contest, as over passions, or over temptations, or in any moral or spiritual struggle.
  • noun A female deity of the Greeks and Romans, the personification of success in battle or in any active struggle.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The defeat of an enemy in battle, or of an antagonist in any contest; a gaining of the superiority in any struggle or competition; conquest; triumph; -- the opposite of defeat.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An instance of having won a competition or battle.
  • verb rare To achieve a victory

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a successful ending of a struggle or contest

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Old French victorie, from Latin victōria, from victor, victor; see victor.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Middle English victory, victorie, from Old French victorie, from Latin victōria, from victor ("victor"). Displaced native Middle English siȝe, sye ("victory") (from Old English siġe ("victory")), Old English sigor ("victory, triumph").

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Examples

  • Ahmadinejad's 'victory' saps the Islamic Republic yahooBuzzArticleHeadline = 'Ahmadinejad\'s \'victory\' saps the Islamic Republic '; yahooBuzzArticleSummary =' Article: The Islamic Republic needs to seize the moment to respond to Iranians and the wider world before it traps itself into becoming the Islamic Republic of the Revolutionary Guards of Iran, an isolated military dictatorship akin to North Korea or Myanmar.

    Ahmadinejad's 'victory' saps the Islamic Republic 2009

  • VIEW FAVORITES yahooBuzzArticleHeadline = 'Iraq’s election a victory for Iran, says Rafsanjani'; yahooBuzzArticleSummary = 'Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Iran’s influential former president, on Friday called Iraq’s parliamentary elections a “victory” for Iran and said the vote had shattered any US expansionist ambitions in the Middle East.'

    OpEdNews - Quicklink: Iraq��s election a victory for Iran, says Rafsanjani 2005

  • "Yes," he murmured, "thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory -- _the victory_ -- victory!"

    A Middy of the Slave Squadron A West African Story Harry Collingwood 1886

  • "The council shall assist the major party candidates and the president-elect by making every reasonable effort to facilitate the transition between administrations," Bush's order said. and a few more hosannah's ... world sees obama's victory as a new beginning for america* world celebrates barack obama victory* around the world, obama triumph lifts battered US image* the world reacts to president-elect obama: 'a new deal for a new world'* propelled by internet, obama wins presidency* how will president obama wield his vast internet army?

    media monarchy 2008

  • "I'm confident that we can use the word victory right now, which obviously sounds very good for the first elected Asian mayor of the city," Mr. Lee said to reporters in City Hall.

    Interim San Francisco Mayor Wins Vote Vauhini Vara 2011

  • In teh end, a McCain victory is a loss for all Americans.

    Catch Him if You Can - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com 2008

  • It's rather interesting here, Lou, that the term victory has changed meaning.

    CNN Transcript Nov 20, 2006 2006

  • With Beckham, who arrived in 2007, Irish striker Robbie Keane and Donovan in the squad, the side has three 'designated players' paid above salary cap restrictions and anything less than a title victory would have been deemed a failure.

    The Globe and Mail - Home RSS feed Jahmal Corner 2011

  • The Galaxy deserved the victory after dominating the contest to secure a title victory that validates the franchise's lucrative investment in a star-studded roster.

    The Globe and Mail - Home RSS feed Jahmal Corner 2011

  • Gary Speed front row, second right made his professional debut for Leeds United in 1988 and four years later played a key role in their title victory as part of a midfield that also comprised Gordon Strachan, Gary McAllister and David Batty

    The Guardian World News Steven Bloor 2011

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