Etimology
From Middle English winnen, from Old English winnan (“to labour, swink, toil, trouble oneself; resist, oppose, contradict; fight, strive, struggle, rage; endure”) (compare Old English ġewinnan (“conquer, obtain, gain; endure, bear, suffer; be ill”)), from Proto-Germanic *winnaną (“to swink, labour, win, gain, fight”), from Proto-Indo-European *wenh₁- (“to strive, wish, desire, love”). Cognate with Low German winnen, Dutch winnen, German gewinnen, Danish vinde, Norwegian Bokmål vinne, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish vinna.
verb
win (third-person singular simple present wins, present participle winning, simple past won or (obsolete) wan, past participle won)
(obsolete, transitive) To conquer, defeat.
(transitive, intransitive) To reach some destination or object, despite difficulty or toil (now usually intransitive, with preposition or locative adverb).
(transitive) To triumph or achieve victory in (a game, a war, etc.).
(transitive) To gain (a prize) by succeeding in competition or contest.
(transitive) To obtain (someone) by wooing; to make an ally or friend of (frequently with over).
(intransitive) To achieve victory.
(intransitive) To have power, coercion or control.
(transitive) To obtain (something desired).
(transitive) To cause a victory for someone.
(transitive, mining) To extract (ore, coal, etc.).
(transitive, informal) To defeat or surpass someone or something.
Examples
For and we doo bataille we two wyl fyghte with one knyȝt at ones and therfore yf ye wille fyghte ſoo we wille be redy at what houre ye wille aſſigne And yf ye wynne vs in bataille the lady ſhal haue her landes ageyne ye ſay wel ſayd ſir Vwayne therfor make yow redy ſo that ye be here to morne in the defence of the ladyes ryght
For the glory, the power to win the Black Lord, I will search for the Emerald Sword.
I well may gang out, love, but I'll never win home.
As this position was vulnerable, a trench was immediately begun from the junction of the Green Line with Lager Alley, back to the old British front line, in order to form a defensive flank for the protection of the troops of the 5th Infantry Brigade who had won through to their objective.
Parson Brooke was transferred in a couple of years to the Southwark mint, on dissolution of which he won back to the Tower, there to experiment with machinery in Mary's reign.
That euen in the Porch he him did win, And cleft his head aſunder to his chin
And when the stony path began, By which the naked peak they won, Up flew the snowy ptarmigan.
“Has he nae friends?” said she, in a tearful voice.“That has he so!” cried Alan, “if we could but win to them!—friends and rich friends, beds to lie in, food to eat, doctors to see to him—and here he must tramp in the dubs and sleep in the heather like a beggarman.”
to win the jackpot in a lottery; to win a bottle of wine in a raffle
Thy virtue won me; with virtue preserve me.
She is a woman; therefore to be won.
Mr. Weston seems an excellent creature—quite a first-rate favourite with me already, I assure you. And she appears so truly good—there is something so motherly and kind-hearted about her, that it wins upon one directly.
Who would win in a fight between an octopus and a dolphin?
Ever since the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, Bostonians now run as "One Boston." The terrorists did not win.
The company hopes to win an order from the government worth over 5 million dollars.
The success of the economic policies should win Mr. Smith the next elections.
The policy success should win the elections for Mr. Smith.
Etimology
From Middle English winn, winne, from Old English winn (“toil, labor, trouble, hardship; profit, gain; conflict, strife, war”), from Proto-Germanic *winną (“labour, struggle, fight”), from Proto-Indo-European *wenh₁- (“to strive, desire, wish, love”). Cognate with German Gewinn (“profit, gain”), Dutch gewin (“profit, gain”).
noun
win (plural wins)
An individual victory.
(slang) A feat carried out successfully; a victorious achievement.
(obsolete) Gain; profit; income.
(obsolete) Wealth; goods owned.
Examples
Antonym: loss
Our first win of the season put us in high spirits.
Giovani dos Santos smashed home a third five minutes later to wrap up the win.
Antonym: fail
Etimology
From Middle English wynne, winne, wunne, from Old English wynn (“joy, rapture, pleasure, delight, gladness”), from Proto-West Germanic *wunnju, from Proto-Germanic *wunjō (“joy, delight, pleasure, lust”), from Proto-Indo-European *wenh₁- (“to strive, wish, desire, love”). Cognate with German Wonne (“bliss, joy, delight”), archaic Dutch wonne (“joy”), Danish ynde (“grace”), Icelandic yndi (“delight”).
noun
win
(Scotland) Pleasure; joy; delight.
Alternative form of wynn
Etimology
From wind.
verb
win
(transitive, Scotland) To dry by exposure to the wind.