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

Other Words From

• post·conquest adjective
• re·conquest noun
• self-conquest 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

This was the case for one Atlanta-area man over the weekend who flashed two thumbs up as he was halfway through his conquest.

From Washington Post

Missions were sites of conflict, conquest, and forced labor.

From Voice of San Diego

The result of that conquest has been a full-fledged effort by the GOP conference to whitewash the Capitol attack, which left five people dead and at least 140 police officers wounded.

From Vox

Situating Indigenous people in the past was an important conceptual step for new Americans to make in the process of conquest.

From Washington Post

The maturation of Grundberg as a renowned critic coincides with the maturation of photography as an art form and its conquest of the art market.

From Washington Post

Before the 16thcentury, Spanish conquest, the Aztecs saw the skull as a symbol of rebirth.

From The Daily Beast

Experts hypothesize the painting represents the “conquest dance,” a Christian conversion ritual still performed to this day.

From The Daily Beast

The conquest—and the reaction to it—have given him an aura of invincibility that holy-warrior wannabes find quite thrilling.

From The Daily Beast

This conquest has brought instability to unexpected parts of the region.

From The Daily Beast

Nonviolent subjects were easier to rule and more likely to provide the revenue and manpower that would enable further conquest.

From The Daily Beast

When Cortez made conquest of Mexico in 1519 smoking seemed to be a common as well as an ancient custom among the natives.

From Project Gutenberg

They threw down their weapons with sullen obedience and the first great step towards the re-conquest of India was taken.

From Project Gutenberg

Ferdinand de Soto sailed from Havana with ten ships for the conquest of Florida.

From Project Gutenberg

Bonaparte with an immense armament sailed from Toulon for the conquest of Egypt.

From Project Gutenberg

Before leaving for France the Emperor had drawn up a cut and dried plan for the systematic conquest of the whole Peninsula.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

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