“Triumph” can mean a great victory, achievement or cause for celebration. Its opposites range from straightforward defeat to temporary setbacks and complete collapse.
Quick List: 13 Antonyms
- Defeat
- Failure
- Loss
- Setback
- Downfall
- Collapse
- Surrender
- Disappointment
- Frustration
- Reverse
- Fiasco
- Debacle
- Misfire
Defeat
Defeat is the clearest opposite when triumph means victory in a contest, conflict or campaign.
Example: The team accepted defeat after a close final.
Failure
Failure contrasts with triumph when a goal, plan or attempt does not succeed.
Example: The experiment was not a triumph but a useful failure.
Loss
Loss is a neutral opposite in competitions, battles, negotiations or other situations with winners and losers.
Example: The club recorded its first loss of the season.
Setback
Setback describes a problem that delays progress without necessarily ending the effort.
Example: The funding cut was a setback rather than a final defeat.
Downfall
Downfall suggests a dramatic loss of power, success or status.
Example: The scandal contributed to the leader’s downfall.
Collapse
Collapse describes complete or sudden failure of a system, plan, structure or effort.
Example: Negotiations ended in collapse.
Surrender
Surrender contrasts with triumph in conflict by describing giving up resistance or conceding.
Example: The siege ended with the defenders’ surrender.
Disappointment
Disappointment focuses on the emotional result when hoped-for success does not occur.
Example: The cancellation was a major disappointment.
Frustration
Frustration describes blocked progress or unmet aims rather than a final outcome.
Example: Repeated delays turned optimism into frustration.
Reverse
Reverse is a formal noun for a defeat or setback, especially in political or military contexts.
Example: The party suffered an unexpected electoral reverse.
Fiasco
Fiasco describes a conspicuous and often embarrassing failure.
Example: The launch became a public-relations fiasco.
Debacle
Debacle is a strong word for a sudden, humiliating or disastrous failure.
Example: The poorly planned event ended in a debacle.
Misfire
Misfire is an informal figurative term for an attempt that fails to produce the intended effect.
Example: The advertising campaign was an expensive misfire.
Choose Temporary or Final Failure
A setback may be recoverable, while defeat and loss describe a completed unsuccessful outcome. Collapse, fiasco and debacle are much stronger and imply serious or conspicuous failure, so use them only when the scale justifies it.