Win

• POS: Noun, Verb (usu participle), Verb (transitive)

CIDE DICTIONARY

Win, v. t. [OE. winnen, AS. winnan to strive, labor, fight, endure; akin to OFries. winna, OS. winnan, D. winnen to win, gain, G. gewinnen, OHG. winnan to strive, struggle, Icel. vinna to labor, suffer, win, Dan. vinde to win, Sw. vinna, Goth. winnan to suffer, Skr. van to wish, get, gain, conquer. Venerate, Winsome, Wish, Wont, a.].

•  To gain by superiority in competition or contest; to obtain by victory over competitors or rivals; as, to win the prize in a gate; to win money; to win a battle, or to win a country.  Milton.  [1913 Webster]

  "Thy well-breathed horse
  Impels the flying car, and wins the course."  [1913 Webster]
•  To allure to kindness; to bring to compliance; to gain or obtain, as by solicitation or courtship.  [1913 Webster]

  "Thy virtue wan me; with virtue preserve me."  [1913 Webster]

  "She is a woman; therefore to be won."  [1913 Webster]
•  To gain over to one's side or party; to obtain the favor, friendship, or support of; to render friendly or approving; as, to win an enemy; to win a jury.  [1913 Webster]
•  To come to by toil or effort; to reach; to overtake.  [1913 Webster]

  "Even in the porch he him did win."  [1913 Webster]

  "And when the stony path began,
  By which the naked peak they wan,
  Up flew the snowy ptarmigan."  [1913 Webster]
•  To extract, as ore or coal.  Raymond.  [1913 Webster]

Syn. -- To gain; get; procure; earn. See Gain.

Win, v. i. 

 To gain the victory; to be successful; to triumph; to prevail.  [1913 Webster]
"Nor is it aught but just
That he, who in debate of truth hath won,
should win in arms."  [1913 Webster]

To win of, to be conqueror over. [Obs.] Shak. -- To win on or To win upon. (a) To gain favor or influence with. “You have a softness and beneficence winning on the hearts of others.” Dryden. (b) To gain ground on. “The rabble . . . will in time win upon power.” Shak.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Win, v. & n.
--v. (winning; past and past part. won)
1 tr. acquire or secure as a result of a fight, contest, bet, litigation, or some other effort (won some money; won my admiration).
2 tr. be victorious in (a fight, game, race, etc.).
3 intr. a be the victor; win a race or contest etc. (who won?; persevere, and you will win). b (foll. by through, free, etc.) make one's way or become by successful effort.
4 tr. reach by effort (win the summit; win the shore).
5 tr. obtain (ore) from a mine.
6 tr. dry (hay etc.) by exposure to the air.
--n. victory in a game or bet etc.

Idiom

win the day be victorious in battle, argument, etc. win over persuade, gain the support of. win one's spurs 1 colloq. gain distinction or fame.
2 hist. gain a knighthood. win through (or out) overcome obstacles. you can't win colloq. there is no way to succeed. you can't win them all colloq. a resigned expression of consolation on failure.

Derivative

winnable adj.

Etymology

OE winnan toil, endure: cf. OHG winnan, ON vinna

THESAURUS

Win

Cadmean victory, KO, Pyrrhic victory, accomplish, achieve, acquire, annex, argue into, ascendancy, attain, bag, be seized of, bear the palm, beat, beat all hollow, best, bring in, bring over, bring round, bring to reason, captivate, capture, carry, carry away, carry it, carry off, carry the day, catch, chalk up, championship, charm, clobber, come by, come in for, come into, come out first, con, conquer, conquest, contract, convince, corral, defeat, derive, drag down, draw, draw over, earn, easy victory, enter into possession, finish in front, fluke, gain, gain over, gain the day, get, grand slam, harvest, have, hook, hook in, knock down, knockout, landslide, landslide victory, lick, make, make a killing, mastery, moral victory, net, obtain, outtalk, overcome, persuade, pick up, picnic, prevail, prevail on, prevail upon, prevail with, procure, produce, pull down, pushover, reach, realize, reap, runaway victory, sack, score, secure, sell, sell one on, skin, subdual, subduing, success, sway, take, take the cake, talk into, talk over, total victory, triumph, trounce, victory, walkaway, walkover, wangle, wangle into, wear down, win out, win over, win the battle, win the laurels, win the palm, win the prize, win through, winning, winning streak, worst, yield

ROGET THESAURUS

Win

Acquisition

VB acquire, get, gain, win, earn, obtain, procure, gather, collect, pick, pickup, glean, find, come upon, pitch upon, light upon, scrape up, scrape together, get in, reap and carry, net, bag, sack, bring home, secure, derive, draw, get in the harvest, profit, make profit, draw profit, turn a quick profit, turn to profit, turn to account, make capital out of, make money by, obtain a return, reap the fruits of, reap an advantage, gain an advantage, turn a penny, turn an honest penny, make the pot boil, bring grist to the mill, make money, coin money, raise money, raise funds, raise the wind, fill one's pocket, treasure up, realize, clear, produce, take, get back, recover, regain, retrieve, revendicate, replevy, redeem, come by one's own, come by, come in for, receive, inherit, step into a fortune, step into the shoes of, succeed to, get hold of, get between one's finger and thumb, get into one's hand, get at, take possession, come into possession, enter into possession, be profitable, pay, answer, accrue.