Pyrrhic victory

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Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˌpɪɹ.ɪk ˈvɪk.t(ə)ɹ.i/

Noun

Pyrrhic victory

1. A very costly victory, wherein the considerable losses outweigh the gain, so as to render the struggle not worth the cost.
   • "Tough pensions regulation designed to protect employees in final-salary occupational schemes will prove a pyrrhic victory for unions and the government, a report warned yesterday." —The Guardian, October 6, 2005 ↗
   • "We now know that it [the Six-Day War] was a Pyrrhic victory." —Amos Elon: Israelis & Palestinians: What Went Wrong?, November 21, 2002 ↗

Synonyms

• hollow victory

Related terms

• Pyrrhic

Translations

• French: victoire à la Pyrrhus
• German: Pyrrhussieg
• Italian: vittoria di Pirro
• Portuguese: vitória de Pirro, vitória pírrica, vitória pirrónica (rare), vitória pirrônica (rare)
• Russian: Пи́ррова побе́да
• Spanish: victoria pírrica

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