succumb
Americanverb
-
to give way in face of the overwhelming force (of) or desire (for)
-
to be fatally overwhelmed (by disease, old age, etc); die (of)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
succumbsimple
-
succumbssimple
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have succumbedperfect
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has succumbedperfect
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am succumbingprogressive
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are succumbingprogressive
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is succumbingprogressive
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have been succumbingperfect progressive
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has been succumbingperfect progressive
Past
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succumbedsimple
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had succumbedperfect
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was succumbingprogressive
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were succumbingprogressive
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had been succumbingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of succumb
First recorded in 1480–90; from Latin succumbere, from suc- suc- + -cumbere (derivative of cubāre “to lie down, recline”); cf. incumbent
Explanation
Use the verb succumb to say that someone yields to something they've tried to fight off, such as despair, temptation, disease or injury. If you succumb to cancer, it means you die of it. From this sentence you can see that this verb is usually followed by the preposition to. The Latin root is succumbere, from the prefix sub- "under" plus -cumbere "to lie down."
Vocabulary lists containing succumb
Tier 2 Words for the SBAC ELA Items
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List 3
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"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 1–7
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Let’s hope the Gopher coach doesn’t succumb to dysentery by Halloween.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
He senses the world changing in real time and doesn’t want to get left behind, lest his reporting and notoriety succumb to oblivion.
From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026
If their CTmax is exceeded, insects succumb to desiccation, muscle spasms and eventual stupor.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026
It nevertheless seems a good bet that, sooner or later and quite likely sooner, the market will succumb to the gravitational pull of insider bearishness.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
No plagues rain down upon museum employees; Marie-Laure does not succumb to snakebite or tumble into a sewer and break her back.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
The market might not be imploding so much as readjusting as the tech industry succumbs to more realistic expectations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
The question is whether the party now meekly succumbs to the browbeating:
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 14, 2026
In the more pessimistic schema, Tesla succumbs to competition and margin pressure, the market disregards Optimus in valuations and Robotaxi has slower growth expected.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 8, 2025
Music: Controversial manager succumbs to complications of stroke.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2025
On 29 January 2016, the last hive of honeybees, located on an almond farm in California, succumbs to CCD.
From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson
The singer and musician succumbed to breast cancer on Sept. 28 in Nashville.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
That puts you in an enviable position, someone with a level head who has never, or rarely, succumbed to temptation.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 26, 2026
The Indian embassy in Saudi Arabia said on Sunday that an Indian man had succumbed to the injuries he sustained in the attack.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
Yes, bears: crypto slang for people who think the price of Bitcoin is going to fall or who have in some other way succumbed to crypto pessimism.
From Slate ● Sep. 20, 2026
Near the end of his trip, it turned out, Chris had gotten lost in the Mojave Desert and had nearly succumbed to dehydration.
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
He hadn’t pitched in a game since early July after succumbing to what appeared to be a season-ending shoulder injury.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
But the very glaciers and mountains giving Nepal this massive natural advantage are succumbing to global warming - and last Wednesday's deadly floods have laid bare the risks to the nation's hydropower ambitions.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
You need to balance your enjoyment of the present with building a future in California, without succumbing to 24/7 pressure.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 3, 2026
But many of his projects are again succumbing to time, with chunks of pediment falling to the sidewalk.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
Sierra whirled around, but it was just Big Jerome, finally succumbing to the team of ninth graders that Little Jerome had rallied.
From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older
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