Seeking to taste defeat (7)

I believe the answer is:

licking

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'defeat' is the definition.
(I know that defeat can be written as licking)

'seeking to taste' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'taste' could be 'lick' (I've seen this before) and 'lick' is present in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for licking that I've seen before include "Tasting - defeat" , "Defeating with the tongue" .)

I've seen this clue in The Globe and Mail.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.