outlast
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to endure or last longer than.
The pyramids outlasted the civilization that built them.
-
to live longer than; outlive.
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
outlastsimple
-
outlastssimple
-
have outlastedperfect
-
has outlastedperfect
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am outlastingprogressive
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are outlastingprogressive
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is outlastingprogressive
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have been outlastingperfect progressive
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has been outlastingperfect progressive
Past
-
outlastedsimple
-
had outlastedperfect
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was outlastingprogressive
-
were outlastingprogressive
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had been outlastingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of outlast
Explanation
To outlast is to live or survive longer than someone (or something) else. Sturdy old buildings will outlast newer, more flimsy and cheaply made structures. Typically, your parents will outlast your grandparents, and you will outlast your parents. You might convince yourself to buy some outrageously expensive shoes by thinking about the fact that they're so well made, they'll probably outlast the much cheaper pair you were considering. And you might wonder why a terrible TV show has been on for years, managing to outlast several brilliant ones that were cancelled after a single season.
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:
Put simply, Pogacar has the racecraft and strength to accelerate away from, and outlast, any opponent in almost any race.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
Companies are vying to outlast the competition on range.
From Barron's ● Apr. 24, 2026
The actual story is bigger than any one president and will outlast this news cycle by a generation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
Oversight of payments to your brother not only prevents him from squandering the money, but it helps family wealth outlast a single generation, the law firm adds.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 16, 2026
"You're just going to have to outlast the others, Peeta. They'll cure it back at the Capitol when we win," I say.
From "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
A prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz, he added, could produce damage to energy infrastructure that outlasts the conflict itself.
From Barron's ● May 1, 2026
If your debt outlasts the Department of Education, alas, you’re not out of the woods yet.
From Slate ● Mar. 26, 2025
Though short-lived, the force that aligns the spins outlasts the duration of the light pulse by a significant margin.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 9, 2023
The smart ones, then, become alert to opportunities to diversify their portfolios and work their way to a kind of moguldom that outlasts radio trends.
From New York Times ● Aug. 7, 2023
“The Germans are at the extreme limit of their efforts....Victory will come to the side that outlasts the other!”
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
The forfeiture fight outlasted his flying career, and last year it produced the ruling the Supreme Court will now review.
From Slate ● Jul. 28, 2026
They also outlasted a Saudi-led coalition that fought for seven years to dislodge the group—a U.S.-designated terrorist organization—after it seized San’a and a swath of northwestern Yemen in a civil war.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Pep Guardiola's final season in charge of Manchester City ended with the Carabao Cup and FA Cup, but this time they were outlasted by Arsenal in the Premier League title race.
From BBC ● May 25, 2026
Both actors understood the task: to interrogate what drove each man to create music and why one’s compositions outlasted the other.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2026
This house outlasted the others because it’s made of concrete.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
It went on to expand its wares to other appliances such as garbage disposals and clothes dryers, outlasting rivals that were bought out or went defunct.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026
Turning off the machines and meeting the folks next door could be the key to outlasting or escaping this cyberpunk nightmare.
From Salon ● Feb. 20, 2026
Australian Alexander Volkanovski cemented his supremacy in the UFC featherweight division on Sunday after again outlasting rival Diego Lopes in a gruelling rematch in Sydney.
From Barron's ● Feb. 1, 2026
“Late Night With Seth Meyers” recently celebrated its 10th year on air, outlasting “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2025
Yet I find myself outlasting those who started in life along with me.
From Life and Letters of Thomas Henry Huxley — Volume 3 by Huxley, Leonard
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.
