outlive
Americanverb (used with object)
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outlives,
present (3rd person singular)
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outlived,
past participle, past
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outliving
present participle
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to live longer than; survive (a person, period, etc.).
She outlived her husband by many years.
-
to outlast; live or last through.
The ship outlived the storm. He hopes to outlive the stigma of his imprisonment.
verb
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to live longer than (someone)
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to live beyond (a date or period)
he outlived the century
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to live through (an experience)
Synonym Usage
See survive.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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outlivesimple
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outlivessimple
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have outlivedperfect
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has outlivedperfect
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am outlivingprogressive
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are outlivingprogressive
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is outlivingprogressive
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have been outlivingperfect progressive
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has been outlivingperfect progressive
Past
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outlivedsimple
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had outlivedperfect
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was outlivingprogressive
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were outlivingprogressive
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had been outlivingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of outlive
First recorded in 1425–75, outlive is from the late Middle English word outliven. See out-, live 1
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:
“The goal isn’t necessarily to retire with the most money. It’s to retire knowing you won’t outlive it.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026
Heck, Bernard Herrmann’s eerie theme song alone will outlive humanity.
From Salon ● Oct. 10, 2026
Davis, who Coltrane saw as a teacher, would outlive him by 24 years, and the trumpeter’s output would clearly be larger.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
So could brain organoids grown and maintained in a lab hypothetically outlive humans?
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
But Rachel started crying when she heard her best friend, Sofia Garcia, would outlive her by 172 days.
From "The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl" by Stacy McAnulty
If your husband outlives the term, you could extend coverage, but premiums will rise sharply because the policy will convert to annually renewable rates.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 9, 2026
If idealism outlives youth, ESG investing will grow significantly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 16, 2026
In Adamsville, as in America, the myth of a man always outlives the man—and, today especially, seems also to outlast the truth.
From Slate ● Nov. 6, 2025
And the state can’t put a claim on it if there is a co-owner who outlives the Medi-Cal beneficiary.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 14, 2024
“A ghost is a hunger, one so strong it outlives the body.”
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
No, the Strokes did not save rock ’n’ roll, but the excitement of “Is This It,” fueled by a combination of tense energy and nonchalance, has outlived the initial hype that surrounded its release.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
One of Zealand’s longest-term clients is a small-business owner who has a terminal diagnosis but has outlived the original prognosis.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026
Natasha Gelman died in Mexico in 1998, having outlived her husband by 12 years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Yet some traditions have outlived the kingdoms that created them.
From BBC ● Mar. 28, 2026
He had outlived Sela, outwitted Cluny, and pulled the wool over the eyes of an abbeyful of mice.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
If you stick to that, raising the amount you withdraw every year by no more than the rate of inflation, you should be certain of outliving your savings.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
Yet despite the theoretical value of these contracts in insuring against outliving one’s wealth, people very rarely buy annuities.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 26, 2026
Annuities, bond ladders and market portfolios each solve different retirement challenges, but only annuities insure longevity risk, or the risk of outliving one’s savings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 3, 2026
She includes a brief appreciation of her wig stylist and reports outliving a few plastic surgeons.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
In Cuba, Fidel Castro held on to power long after Kennedy and Khrushchev were gone, even outliving the Cold War.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
