Skip to content

derrota

defeat

noun deh-RROH-tah Less Common

Usage Note

Derrota is the noun form of the verb derrotar ('to defeat'). It is used in sports, military, and political contexts. Do not confuse it with derrota as a nautical term (ship's course/route), which is a homograph with a completely different origin — context distinguishes them. The idiom sufrir una derrota ('to suffer a defeat') is standard.

Examples

"El equipo aceptó la derrota con dignidad."

Natural Translation

The team accepted the defeat with dignity.

Free starter pack

Building your Spanish vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common Spanish words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Explore Spanish by topic