1. past tense of checkmate; defeated an opponent’s king in chess so that no legal move can prevent capture
2. completely defeated or outmaneuvered someone in a way that leaves them with no options
Usage: figurative

1. in a position where one has been completely defeated with no possible escape or counter-move

Examples

• He checkmated his opponent in just twelve moves.
• The chess master checkmated three players simultaneously.
• The detective checkmated the criminal with irrefutable evidence.
• She felt completely checkmated by her boss’s clever argument.
• The team was checkmated by their opponents’ superior strategy.
• After losing his job and savings, he felt checkmated by circumstances.
• The politician found himself checkmated by the scandal.