noun. A person or thing that defeats or conquers someone or something. 'This is a potential defeater for my being rational in accepting theistic belief. '

Is defeat a bad word?

Defeat is commonly used in sports and in other situations involving direct competition with a measurable outcome. In all of its senses, defeat is negative (except of course for the person doing the defeating).

What does defeated mean in government?

A Government defeat is when the Government fails to persuade a majority of MPs or members of the House of Lords to support them in a division (vote). The term is usually used only to describe occasions where the Government have been defeated in a whipped vote.