有人说过：资本主义世界，永远有赢家或输家： In a capitalist society, there will always be winners and losers。Winners see the gain. Losers see the pain.
WIN作动词用，有获胜和赢得的意思。前者例如You win a game, fight, argument, election。后者例如You win a prize, a medal, or support。WIN指在竞赛、战争、比拼中获得胜利，或者因此而赢得奖金或战利品。
WIN和EARN及GAIN，用法有明显分别。
EARN通常指你为你所做的工作获得报酬：The reporter earns $3000 a month working for a newspaper。GAIN通常指你获得有用和期望得到的东西，不一等和金钱有关：You gained useful experience while working for the newspaper。
WIN和DEFEAT及BEAT，用法也有分别：You do not say that someone wins an enemy or opponent. In a war or battle, you say that one side defeats the other. In a game or contest, you say one person defeats or beats the other.
You win hands down你轻易取得胜利。You win by a long chalk means you win very conclusively你毫不含煳地赢得胜利。You win some rounds means you are partly successful你赢得部份胜利。
WIN作名词用，相等于SUCCESS 成功 or VICTORY胜利。运动方面，两胜三负是two wins and three defeats。双赢的局面是win-win。一个各得其所的局面便是a win-win situation all around。例如：The agreement or solution is a win-win for everyone。反之，便是It’s a no-win situation。
WINNING作形容词用，有两个配词用法很有趣：A winning smile是迷人的一笑；a winning way of doing something is one that makes somebody like you例如令人倾倒的神态；a winning streak is a period of time when you win every game or competition你手风顺，运气好。
A WINNER赢家is a VICTOR胜利者。成者为王，败者为寇。A winner takes all赢者通吃=a situation where the one who defeats others takes all the spoils of the conflict一切战利品，归为己有。
运动场上、赌场上、商场上、情场上，胜利者欢唿，失败者叹息，司空见惯。当某人失意时，你可以安慰他这样说：You can’t win them all =You win some, you lose some 。
VICTORY可以配上不同的形容词：a dramatic victory戏剧性的胜利，a decisive victory决定性的胜利，a narrow victory微弱的险胜，a surprise victory意外的成功，a landslide victory压倒性优势的选举胜利，a well-earned victory理所应得的胜利等，都很常用。
VICTORY前面运用合适的动词，可以考虑不同的搭配：roar, romp, coast, cruise, storm, sweep to victory均表示轻易大获全胜=a runaway success：Michel Phelps swept to victory in 2008 Beijing Olympics with 8 gold medals. Fernando Torres led the Spanish team to runaway victory in the 2012 European Cup.
英国首相Winston Churchill邱吉尔1940年5月13日在国会第一次演讲：You ask: ‘What is our aim?’ I can answer in one word: ‘Victory!’ Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be: for without victory there is no survival不胜则亡。
至于伤亡惨重，得不偿失的胜利，只好说：a Pyrrhic or hollow victory which is not worth winning because the winner has suffered or lost so much in winning it。
DEFEAT是VICTORY的相反词=failure to win or succeed。
用法方面：Defeat is always uncountable in these combinations: You had to admit defeat认输. You can choose to concede defeat or fight back。
Defeated等同conquered, vanquished, overthrown 失败或战败。
DEFEAT可以配上不同的形容词：a heavy defeat大败, a crushing defeat惨败, a humiliating defeat耻辱的失败, a tight defeat惜败, a shock defeat意想不到的挫败。If you say: We aren’t going to take defeat lying down=You won’t accept it easily不轻言败！
冠在DEFEAT前面，表示admit defeat的动词，acknowledge, concede, accept都很常用。例如：美国总统选举，失败一方会大方和对方握手，以示民主公平竞争的风范：The presidential candidate accepted defeat gracefully and shook hands with the winner。表示遭受失败experience a defeat 的动词搭配，crash to, face, taste, suffer都很常用。例如：该政党在大选中惨败：The political party suffered a humiliating defeat in the general election。
失败乃成功之母：Failure is the mother of success。挫折和逆境是通向成功的道路。
功败垂成仍为败：A miss is as good as a mile，换言之，错误再小也是错：there is no difference between only just failing in something and failing it badly because the result is still the same。
有关WINNERS AND LOSERS成败得失的英文隽语，可以列举几句，供大家赏玩：
Winners see the potential;
Losers see the past. 成者看到前面的潜力，败者只眷顾失去的过去。
Winners are a part of the team;
Losers are apart of the team.成者合群，败者离群。
Winners believe in win-win;
Losers believe for them to win someone has to lose. 成者相信双赢，败者相信先要别人输，自己才会赢。
文：文世昌
