self-defeating

adjective

self-de·​feat·​ing ˌself-di-ˈfē-tiŋ 

-dē-

: serving or tending to defeat oneself or itself : counterproductive: such as

a

: acting to defeat its own purpose

a self-defeating argument

You kind of realize that violence can be a self-defeating strategy, because it just gives the other guy an incentive to attack you back in revenge.

—Stephen Pinker

b

: being or involving an attitude of defeatism

Procrastinators tend to be more stressed than other people—even before they start procrastinating. According to a recent study, that's possibly because they have self-defeating thoughts like, "I'm simply too stupid to benefit from more studying, so I'll just hang out on Facebook."

—Shana Lebowitz

Examples of self-defeating in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The principal danger is not that China will recklessly and foolishly engage in a self-defeating bid for regional hegemony by serially invading its neighbors; the danger is that China might come to achieve political domination over East Asia. —Jonathan Kirshner, Foreign Affairs, 22 Jan. 2025

California is going to have to hire more fire personnel, spend more on pre-positioning assets at times of elevated risk, and build more reservoirs much more quickly than its self-defeating red tape currently allows. —The Editors, National Review, 13 Jan. 2025

Waiting and watching is a self-defeating strategy and does nothing for desperate Syrians. —Delaney Simon, Foreign Affairs, 2 Jan. 2025

However, self-defeating rules that alter the game’s brand should always be discouraged. —Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 23 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1812, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

self-defeating

adjective

self-de·​feat·​ing

ˌself-di-ˈfēt-iŋ

: acting to defeat its own purpose