succeed
Americanverb (used without object)
-
succeeds,
present (3rd person singular)
-
succeeded,
past participle, past
-
succeeding
present participle
-
to happen or terminate according to desire; turn out successfully; have the desired result.
Our efforts succeeded.
- Antonyms:
- fail
-
to thrive, prosper, grow, or the like.
Grass will not succeed in this dry soil.
- Antonyms:
- fail
-
to accomplish what is attempted or intended.
We succeeded in our efforts to start the car.
- Antonyms:
- fail
-
to attain success in some popularly recognized form, as wealth or standing.
The class voted him the one most likely to succeed.
- Antonyms:
- fail
-
to follow or replace another by descent, election, appointment, etc. (often followed byto ).
-
to come next after something else in an order or series.
verb (used with object)
-
succeeds,
present (3rd person singular)
-
succeeded,
past participle, past
-
succeeding
present participle
-
to come after and take the place of, as in an office or estate.
-
to come next after in an order or series, or in the course of events; follow.
- Antonyms:
- precede
verb
-
(intr) to accomplish an aim, esp in the manner desired
he succeeded in winning
-
(intr) to happen in the manner desired
the plan succeeded
-
(intr) to acquit oneself satisfactorily or do well, as in a specified field
to succeed in publishing
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to come next in order (after someone or something)
-
to take over an office, post, etc (from a person)
he succeeded to the vice presidency
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to come into possession (of property, etc); inherit
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(intr) to have a result according to a specified manner
the plan succeeded badly
-
(intr) to devolve upon
the estate succeeded to his son
Synonym Usage
Succeed, flourish, prosper, thrive mean to do well. To succeed is to turn out well, to attain a goal: It is everyone's wish to succeed in life. To flourish is to give evidence of success or a ripe development of power, reputation, etc.: Culture flourishes among free people. To prosper is to achieve and enjoy material success: He prospered but was still discontented. Thrive suggests vigorous growth and development such as results from natural vitality or favorable conditions: The children thrived in the sunshine. See follow.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
succeedsimple
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succeedssimple
-
have succeededperfect
-
has succeededperfect
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am succeedingprogressive
-
are succeedingprogressive
-
is succeedingprogressive
-
have been succeedingperfect progressive
-
has been succeedingperfect progressive
Past
-
succeededsimple
-
had succeededperfect
-
was succeedingprogressive
-
were succeedingprogressive
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had been succeedingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of succeed
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English succeden from Old French succeder, from Latin succēdere “to go (from) under, follow, prosper,” equivalent to suc- suc- + cēdere “to go” ( see cede)
Explanation
When you succeed at something, you reach a goal or do really well. If you practice speaking Arabic every day, you are likely to succeed at becoming fluent in this language. When you succeed, you achieve the result you hope for, but another way to use succeed is to describe taking over a position. A prince who will inherit his father's kingdom will succeed his father one day, and a new high school principal can be said to succeed the old one. The Latin root of succeed is succedere, come close after.
Vocabulary lists containing succeed
"The Civil Rights Movement"
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act IV
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"Kids Like Me: Voices of the Immigrant Experience"
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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:
Whether this legal challenge will succeed depends in part on whether judges will continue to defer to the president on these particular levies, no matter how much they deviate from previous practice.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
“Lyft does well when drivers do well, and we’ll stay focused on helping drivers succeed while keeping rideshare affordable and dependable for everyone who counts on it.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
So far, the White House has not announced who will succeed Leavitt, and sources within and close to the administration said no decision has yet been made.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
The two candidates will face off in the Nov. 3 election to succeed outgoing Gov. Gavin Newsom, and took time to deliver their campaign messages at an afternoon political forum in the state capital.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Anyone who knew Ruth knew that her determination to succeed was phenomenal.
From "Women in Space" by Karen Bush Gibson
And, if a project succeeds, you’ve left a paper trail that shows you were instrumental in its execution.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
Clayton, who is also a former securities regulator and federal prosecutor, succeeds Tulsi Gabbard, who left her job last month and was replaced temporarily by Pulte.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
Colleagues describe a talent for making people feel valued that succeeds even when they see it coming.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
The former securities regulator and federal prosecutor succeeds Tulsi Gabbard, who resigned last month, and inherits an 18-agency intelligence community shaken by leadership turnover and staff cuts.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
She only succeeds in slowing Marco’s heartbeat enough that he falls deeply asleep.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
Australia overcame an early red card for Miles Amatosero to defeat home side Japan and seal their first win under new head coach Les Kiss, who succeeded Joe Schmidt earlier this year.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
All three approaches had been tested individually before, but none had succeeded in permanently clearing the virus.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 13, 2026
On Wednesday, he succeeded with a splash, joining Joshua Kushner to purchase the Lakers for $12.5 billion.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
After this successful test, the Gadget was succeeded by Fat Man and Little Boy, the two bombs dropped over Japan.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
They succeeded after an agonizing amount of time: five minutes.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
That failure led to Arne Slot being sacked as Liverpool manager just 12 months after he masterminded the club's Premier League title triumph in his first season after succeeding Jurgen Klopp.
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
In May 2016, he got a second chance to take over at United, succeeding Louis van Gaal.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
But the coaches know they have someone passionate about succeeding.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
Jaissle, though, sees the club's rebuild as an opportunity to start a new cycle and mould a young, hungry side after succeeding predecessor Eddie Howe.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
We worked hard that first day, but on each succeeding day Kleynhans pushed us harder.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
