checkmate
checkmate Lexical Profile
checkmate Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A winning position in chess in which a player's king is under direct attack and has no legal move to escape.
"The grandmaster sacrificed his rook to force a brilliant checkmate in three moves."
A complete and decisive defeat, or a situation in which someone's plans or actions are totally thwarted.
"The unexpected testimony served as a legal checkmate to the defense's entire strategy."
• interjection
An exclamation uttered in chess to declare that the opponent's king has been placed in an inescapable position of check, thereby ending the game.
"She moved her queen to the back rank and calmly announced, "Checkmate!""
• verb
To place an opponent's king in an inescapable position of check in chess, thereby winning the game.
"He managed to checkmate his opponent using only a knight and a bishop."
To outmaneuver, frustrate, or completely defeat an opponent or their plans.
"The investigative journalist's latest report effectively checkmated the corrupt administration."
Word Nuance & Usage
Do not confuse 'checkmate' with 'stalemate'; in chess, a checkmate is a decisive victory where the opponent's king is trapped under attack, whereas a stalemate is a draw in which the player whose turn it is has no legal moves available but is not in check.
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in Middle English from Old French 'eschec mat', which passed through Arabic from the Persian phrase 'shāh māt', literally meaning 'the king is helpless' or 'the king is dead'.