victory

vic·tory
V4I1C3T1O1R1Y4
UK/ˈvɪk.tə.ɹi/UK/ˈvɪk.tɹi/British, Southern, Standard/ˈvɪk.tə.ɹɪj/British, Southern, Standard/ˈvɪkt͡ʃ(ə)ɹɪj/

noun

The condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; (countable) an instance of this.

“It was a great victory on the battlefield.”

Similar
triumphwinVictoriasura
Opposite
defeatloss
OriginMiddle English victory ← Anglo-Norman victorie ← Old French victorie →
CommonScrabble 15
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

victory1

nounvictory (countable and uncountable, plural victories)

plural victories · alternative victorie

  1. uncountableThe condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; (countable) an instance of this.

    It was a great victory on the battlefield.

    5 more examples

    I behelde, and the ſame horne made battail agaynſt the ſayntes, yee ãd gat the victory off them: […]

    1535 October 14 (Gregorian calendar), Myles Coverdale, transl., Biblia: The Byble, […] (Coverdale Bible), [Cologne or Marburg]: [Eucharius Cervicornus and Johannes Soter?], →OCLC, Daniel vij:[21], folio lxxxi, recto, column 1

    Hieronimo, it greatly pleaſeth vs, / That in our victorie thou haue a ſhare, / By vertue of thy vvorthy Sonnes exployt.

    c. 1587 (date written), [Thomas Kyd], The Spanish Tragedie: […] (Fourth Quarto), London: […] W[illiam] W[hite] for T[homas] Pauier, […], published 1602, →OCLC, Act I

    VVhy ſo: then am I ſure of Victorie. Novv therefore let vs hence, and loſe no hovvre, / Till vvee meet VVarvvicke, vvith his forreine povvre.

    c. 1591–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Third Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i], page 164, column 1

    Fortune and victorie ſet on thy helme.

    c. 1593 (date written), [William Shakespeare], The Tragedy of King Richard the Third. […] (First Quarto), London: […] Valentine Sims [and Peter Short] for Andrew Wise, […], published 1597, →OCLC, [Act V, scene v]

    The teares haue got ſmall victory by that, / For it vvas bad enough before their ſpite.

    c. 1591–1595 (date written), [William Shakespeare], […] Romeo and Juliet. […] (First Quarto), London: […] Iohn Danter, published 1597, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]

    Synonyms: triumph, win · Antonyms: defeat, loss

  2. Romancountableuncountablehuman sciencesAlternative letter-case form of Victory (“(uncountable) the Roman goddess of victory, the counterpart of the Greek goddess Nike; also (countable), an artistic depiction of her, chiefly as a winged woman”).

    All along the Champs Elysées were […] statues of plaster representing nymphs, triumphs, victories, and other female personages painted in oil so as to represent marble; real marble could have had no better effect, and the appearance of the whole was lively and picturesque in the extreme.

    1841, M. A. Titmarsh [pseudonym; William Makepeace Thackeray], “Mr. Titmarsh to Miss Smith on the Second Funeral of Napoleon. Letter III. The Funeral Ceremony.”, in The Second Funeral of Napoleon: […] And The Chronicle of the Drum. […], London: Hugh Cunningham, […], →OCLC, page 63
interjection
  1. Used to encourage someone to achieve success, or to celebrate a success or triumph.

    Saint George and Victory; fight Souldiers, fight: […]

    1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene vi], page 113, column 1
    2 more examples

    Victory! Victory to the prostrate nations! / Bear witness Night, and ye mute Constellations / Who gaze on us from your crystalline cars! / Thoughts have gone forth whose powers can sleep no more! / Victory! Victory!

    1817 December (indicated as 1818), Percy B[ysshe] Shelley, “Canto Fifth”, in Laon and Cythna; or, The Revolution of the Golden City: A Vision of the Nineteenth Century. […], London: […] [F]or Sherwood, Neely, & Jones, […]; and C[harles] and J[ames] Ollier, […]; by B[uchanan] M‘Millan, […], →OCLC, stanza LI, section 6, page 123

    Victory! Victory! Russia's famish'd eagles / Dare not to prey beneath the crescent's light.

    1821 (date written), Percy B[ysshe] Shelley, Hellas: A Lyrical Drama, London: Charles and James Ollier […], published 1822, →OCLC, page 47

victory2

verbvictory (third-person singular simple present victories, present participle victorying, simple past and past participle victoried)

present singular third person victories · participle present victorying · participle past victoried · past victoried

  1. obsoleteraretransitiveTo defeat or triumph over (someone or something).

    [W]hen ſin got the upper hand of us, and vvee victoried by them; vve vvere then their ſervants, their ſlave: vvhen vvee overcome and have victoried them; let us make them our ſlaves perpetually; let us bind them in chaines, caſt them in priſon, and for ever utterly deſtroy their evill povver: […]

    1639, John Welles, “Of Mortification”, in The Soules Progresse to the Celestiall Canaan, or Heavenly Jerusalem. […], London: […] E[dward] G[riffin] and are to be sold by Henry Shephard […], →OCLC, 2nd part, page 245
    1 more example

    [The game of dice and ball] is near of kin, in the nature of the vvord to that game of Cock-all, vvhich boyes uſe amongſt us, vvhich Cock-all, is as much vvin and take all, as a Cock does vvho victorying, has not onely the praiſe of all, but vvins all thats laied on the match by the Abettors againſt him.

    1663, Edward Waterhous[e], chapter XLVIII, in Fortescutus Illustratus; or A Commentary on that Nervous Treatise De Laudibus Legum Angliæ, Written by Sir John Fortescue Knight, […], London: […] Tho[mas] Roycroft for Thomas Dicas […], →OCLC, page 517

Victory3

proper nounVictory (countable and uncountable, plural Victorys or Victories)

plural Victorys · plural Victories · alternative victory

  1. uncountableThe 48th sura (chapter) of the Qur'an.
  2. countableuncountableA surname.
  3. Romanuncountablehuman sciencesSynonym of Victoria (“the Roman goddess of victory, the counterpart of the Greek goddess Nike”); also (countable), an artistic depiction of her, chiefly as a winged woman.

    Behind Roma seated with Victoriola on the exten ded^([sic]) hand a full-sized Victory approaches from the right with crown and palm.

    1974, The Goddess Roma in the Art of the Roman Empire, page 44
    3 more examples

    All along the Champs Elysées were […] statues of plaster representing nymphs, triumphs, victories, and other female personages painted in oil so as to represent marble; real marble could have had no better effect, and the appearance of the whole was lively and picturesque in the extreme.

    1841, M. A. Titmarsh [pseudonym; William Makepeace Thackeray], “Mr. Titmarsh to Miss Smith on the Second Funeral of Napoleon. Letter III. The Funeral Ceremony.”, in The Second Funeral of Napoleon: […] And The Chronicle of the Drum. […], London: Hugh Cunningham, […], →OCLC, page 63

    The two reverse groupings which originate on sestertii of Hadrian (BMCCRE III, pl. 79, 7), continue through the coinage of Caracalla, and show Victory floating or standing to the left or right with a standard or trophy held crosswise and extended in the hands are nothing more than the translations of similarly arranged Victoriae from the spandrels of triumphal arches to coin reverses.

    1953, Gnomon: Kritische Zeitschrift für die gesamte klassische Altertumswissenschaft, pages 475–476

    We know from Dio that, when the Curia Iulia, begun by Caesar in 44 B.C., was finally dedicated in 29 B.C., Octavian set up a statue of Victory beside the altar of Victoria which he also dedicated there (51, 22, 2).[…]The type, which inspired innumerable copies, appears on coins by 31 B.C., if not earlier, and shows such a Victory holding in the right hand a wreath and in the left a palm branch, occasionally other attributes. Four years later, when Augustus received the clupeus virtutis, this was placed near the statue of Victory in the Curia Iulia.[…]The fact that there are two Victories at Lugdunum raises a different question, however.

    1993, Duncan Fishwick, “The Twin Victories”, in The Imperial Cult in the Latin West, 2nd edition, volume I,1, E.J. Brill, →ISBN, book I, chapter “Roma et Augustus”, subchapter “The Altar of the Three Gauls”, pages 111–112

    Synonyms: Victoria

  4. A number of places in the United States:
    1. countableuncountableA town in Cayuga County, New York.

      Synonyms: sura

    2. countableuncountableA village in Saratoga County, New York.
    3. countableuncountableA neighbourhood of Camden, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
    4. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Jackson County, Oklahoma.
    5. countableuncountableA town in Essex County, Vermont.
    6. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Wheatland, Vernon County, Wisconsin.
  5. countableuncountableA rural municipality in Saskatchewan, Canada; in full, the Rural Municipality of Victory No. 226.
  6. countableuncountableA volcano in Papua New Guinea, also known as Mount Victory.
  7. PhilippinesabbreviationcolloquialcountableellipsisuncountableEllipsis of Victory Liner, a bus company.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounThe condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; (countable) an instance of this.

Similar
triumphwin
Opposite
defeatloss

proper nounSynonym of Victoria (“the Roman goddess of victory, the counterpart of the Greek goddess Nike”); also (countable), an artistic depiction of her, chiefly as a winged woman.

Similar
Victoria

proper nounA town in Cayuga County, New York.

Similar
sura

More synonyms by meaning

nouna successful ending of a struggle or contest

Similar
triumph
Opposite
defeat
Broader
endingconclusionfinishsuccess
Also see
triumphvictoriawin

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

victory · noun, interjection

  1. Proto-Indo-European*weyk-“to contain, envelop; to overcome”
  2. Latinvictōria“victory”
  3. Old Frenchvictorie
  4. Anglo-Normanvictorie
  5. Middle Englishvictory
  6. Englishvictory

The noun is derived from Middle English victory, victori, victorie (“supremacy, victory; a defeat or vanquishing, conquest; superior military force; might, power, strength; triumphal celebration or procession; monument commemorating a defeat; superior position, dominance; mastery; moral victory, vindication; success, triumph; redemption, salvation; resurrection of Jesus; means of achieving spiritual victory; reward for or token of perseverance in a spiritual struggle”) [and other forms], borrowed from Anglo-Norman victorie and Old French victorie, a variant of victoire (“victory, win”) (modern French victoire), from Latin victōria (“victory”), from victor (“champion, winner, victor; conqueror, vanquisher”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *weyk- (“to contain, envelop; to overcome”)) + -ia (suffix forming feminine abstract nouns). The English word is analysable as victor + -y (suffix forming abstract nouns denoting a condition, quality, or state), and displaced Middle English siȝe, sye. The interjection is derived from the noun. Cognates Cognate with French victoire, Italian vittoria, Portuguese vitoria, Spanish victoria, Romanian victorie. Tamil வெற்றி (veṟṟi) (pronounced roughly like "vetri") is a false cognate.

More words from Middle English, Anglo-Norman, Old French

Full word history & related roots →

victory · verb

  1. Latinvictōria
  2. Medieval Latinvictōriāre
  3. Old Frenchvictorier
  4. Middle Englishvictorien“to overcome, vanquish”
  5. Englishvictory

From Middle English victorien (“to overcome, vanquish”), from Old French victorier, or from Medieval Latin victōriāre, from Latin victōria (noun); see further at etymology 1. Cognates * Italian vittoriare

More words from Middle English, Old French, Medieval Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Afrikaans oorwinning
  • oorwinningcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Ancient Greek νίκη
  • νίκη (níkē)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Arabic اِنْتِصَار, نَصْر
  • اِنْتِصَار (intiṣār)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • نَصْر (naṣr)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • سورة الفتح48th sura of the Qur'an
Basque garaipen
  • garaipencondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Bengali বিজয়
  • বিজয় (bijoẏ)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Bulgarian побе́да
  • побе́да (pobéda)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Catalan victòria
  • victòriacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Chinese Cantonese 勝利 /胜利
  • 勝利 /胜利condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Chinese Mandarin 勝利 /胜利, 捷
  • 勝利 /胜利 (shènglì)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • 捷 (jié)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Czech vítězství
  • vítězstvícondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Danish sejr
  • sejrcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Dutch victorie, overwinning
  • victoriecondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • overwinningcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • zegecondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Esperanto venko
  • venkocondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Estonian võit
  • võitcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Finnish voitto, voitto kotiin
  • voittocondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • voitto kotiinused to encourage someone to achieve success, or to celebrate a success or triumph
French victoire
  • victoirecondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
German Sieg
  • Siegcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Greek νίκη
  • νίκη (níki)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Hebrew ניצחון \ נִצָּחוֹן
  • ניצחון \ נִצָּחוֹן (nitsakhón)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Hindi ज़फ़र, जय
  • ज़फ़र (zafar)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • जय (jay)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • जीत (jīt)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • विजय (vijay)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Hungarian diadal, győzelem
  • diadalcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • győzelemcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Icelandic sigur
  • sigurcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Indonesian kemenangan
  • kemenangancondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Irish áitheas
  • áitheascondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Italian vittoria, vincita
  • vittoriacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • vincitacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • vittoria (celebratory)used to encourage someone to achieve success, or to celebrate a success or triumph
Japanese 勝ち, 勝利
  • 勝ち (kachi)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • 勝利 (shōri)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Korean 승리
  • 승리 (seungni)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Latin victōria
  • victōriacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Latvian uzvara
  • uzvaracondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Lithuanian pergalė
  • pergalėcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Malay kemenangan
  • kemenangancondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Māori wikitōriatanga, winitanga
  • wikitōriatangacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • winitangacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Norwegian Bokmål seier
  • seiercondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Polish zwycięstwo, wygrana
  • zwycięstwocondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • wygranacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Portuguese vitória, triunfo
  • vitóriacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • triunfocondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Romanian victorie
  • victoriecondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Russian побе́да, викто́рия
  • побе́да (pobéda)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • викто́рия (viktórija)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Scottish Gaelic buaidh
  • buaidhcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Slovak víťazstvo
  • víťazstvocondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Spanish victoria
  • victoriacondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Swahili ushidi
  • ushidicondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Swedish seger, vinst
  • segercondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • vinstcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • segerused to encourage someone to achieve success, or to celebrate a success or triumph
Tagalog tagumpay
  • tagumpaycondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Tamil வெற்றி
  • வெற்றி (veṟṟi)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Thai ชัย, ชัยชนะ
  • ชัย (chai)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • ชัยชนะ (chai-chá-ná)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Turkish galebe, galibiyet
  • galebecondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • galibiyetcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • muzafferiyetcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • utkucondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • yengicondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • zafercondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • Fetih Suresi48th sura of the Qur'an
Ukrainian перемо́га
  • перемо́га (peremóha)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Urdu ظَفَر, جِیت
  • ظَفَر (zafar)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • جِیت (jīt)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • نَصْر (nasr)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • فَتْح (fath)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • نُصْرَت (nusrat)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Vietnamese thắng, thắng lợi
  • thắngcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
  • thắng lợicondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Welsh buddugoliaeth
  • buddugoliaethcondition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Yiddish זיג
  • זיג (zig)condition or state of having won a battle or competition, or having succeeded in an effort; an instance of this
Cite this entry
APA

victory. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/victory

MLA

“victory.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/victory. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “victory,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/victory.

Source: victory on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.