verb
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to give way in face of the overwhelming force (of) or desire (for)
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to be fatally overwhelmed (by disease, old age, etc); die (of)
Other Word Forms
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.
Succumb to his flattery, despite his casual crudeness and arrogance?
From Seattle Times • Mar. 23, 2017
I weighed the options: Succumb to despair, or pick myself up and deal.
From New York Times • Oct. 15, 2010
But daydreams must end With the red setting sun And, like autumn leaves, Succumb to decay.
From Through these Eyes The courageous struggle to find meaning in a life stressed with cancer by Isaacson, Lauren Ann
Succumb, suk-kum′, v.i. to lie down under: to sink under: to yield, to submit, to die.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various
It hath not pleas'd high-thron'd Saturnian Jove To ratify our truce, who both afflicts With labours hard, till either ye shall take Our well-fenc'd city, or yourselves to us Succumb beside your ocean-going ships.
From The Iliad by Derby, Edward George Geoffrey Smith Stanley, Earl of
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.
