prosper

[pros-per]

verb (used without object)

1. to be successful or fortunate, especially in financial respects; thrive; flourish.

   Antonyms: fail

verb (used with object)

1. Archaic.,  to make successful or fortunate.

prosper

/ ˈprɒspə /

verb

1. (usually intr) to thrive, succeed, etc, or cause to thrive, succeed, etc in a healthy way

Other Word Forms

• unprospered adjective
• unprospering adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of prosper¹

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English prosperen, Old French prosperer, from Latin prosperāre “to make happy,” derivative of prosperus prosperous

Word History and Origins

Origin of prosper¹

C15: from Latin prosperāre to succeed, from prosperus fortunate, from _pro- ¹ + spēs hope

Synonym Study

See succeed.

Example Sentences

No nation can prosper when concerns over the soundness of its fiscal policies and debt burden undermine confidence in its money.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

While its greatest strength was among recent immigrants, it also prospered in what we would now call red or purple states: Kansas, Nebraska, Idaho, Oklahoma, Nevada, Arizona.

Read more on Salon

The war had been a human catastrophe, but Hahn'sche Werke had prospered in that period, satisfying the German military's demand for steel.

Read more on BBC

These elites were the East Coast merchants who had prospered from the prewar Atlantic commercial boom that helped plant capitalism’s roots in North America.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"I believe it will prosper and inspire. It will do so because we are strong."

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• bloom 
• blossom 
• catch on 
• do well 
• flourish 
• multiply 
• thrive 

When To Use

What does prosper mean?

Prosper means to be successful or fortunate, especially in a financial or material way.Prosper often implies success in terms of wealth, health, and happiness. But it can also be used broadly, much like the words succeed, thrive, and flourish.You can say that someone is prospering in the present, but the word is perhaps most commonly used in the context of what will happen in the future.Prosper is associated with its use in the phrase “live long and prosper,” the catchphrase of the character Spock in the Star Trek series of TV shows and movies.Someone who prospers can be described as prosperous. The noun prosperity refers to a state of success.Example: If we can continue to maintain this level of quality, our company will continue to prosper.