conquest

[kon-kwest, kong-]

noun

1. the act or state of conquering or the state of being conquered; vanquishment.

   Synonyms: mastery, defeat, subjugation
   Antonyms: surrender

2. the winning of favor, affection, love, etc..

   the conquest of Antony by Cleopatra.

   Synonyms: enchantment, seduction

3. a person whose favor, affection, etc., has been won.

   He's another one of her conquests.

4. anything acquired by conquering, as a nation, a territory, or spoils.

5. the Conquest. Norman Conquest.

conquest

¹

/ ˈkɒnkwɛst, ˈkɒŋ- /

noun

1. the act or an instance of conquering or the state of having been conquered; victory

2. a person, thing, etc, that has been conquered or won

3. the act or art of gaining a person's compliance, love, etc, by seduction or force of personality

4. a person, whose compliance, love, etc, has been won over by seduction or force of personality

Conquest

²

/ ˈkɒnkwɛst, ˈkɒŋ- /

noun

1. See Norman Conquest

2. the conquest by the United Kingdom of French North America, ending in 1763

Other Word Forms

• postconquest adjective
• reconquest noun
• self-conquest noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of conquest¹

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English conqueste, from Anglo-French, Old French, from unattested Vulgar Latin conquēsta (for Latin conquīsīta, feminine past participle of conquīrere ). See con-, quest

Word History and Origins

Origin of conquest¹

C13: from Old French conqueste, from Vulgar Latin conquēsta (unattested), from Latin conquīsīta, feminine past participle of conquīrere to seek out, procure; see _conquer

Synonym Study

See victory.

Example Sentences

The preacher is one of the biggest sinners in Bakersfield, not merely because both he and Honey may as well be using the phone book as a checklist of conquests.

From Los Angeles Times

Imperialism is always about conquest and total subordination of one regime to another.

From Salon

Steve Witkoff, the president’s envoy for special missions, said Sunday that Putin agreed to pass legislation through the Kremlin that would guarantee an end to wars of conquest in Ukraine, or elsewhere in Europe.

From Los Angeles Times

Still, the conquest that Seidler — who died after the 2023 season at age 63 — long envisioned has never seemed so attainable.

From Los Angeles Times

Stakes could not be higher in Ukraine, where nearly a million Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in pursuit of Vladimir Putin’s war of conquest, according to independent analysts.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• annexation 
• invasion 
• occupation 
• rout 
• subjugation 
• takeover