prevail
Americanverb (used without object)
-
prevails,
present (3rd person singular)
-
prevailed,
past participle, past
-
prevailing
present participle
-
to be widespread or current; exist everywhere or generally.
Silence prevailed along the funeral route.
-
to appear or occur as the more important or frequent feature or element; predominate.
Green tints prevail in the upholstery.
- Synonyms:
- preponderate
-
to be or prove superior in strength, power, or influence (usually followed byover ).
They prevailed over their enemies in the battle.
- Synonyms:
- overcome
- Antonyms:
- lose
-
to succeed; become dominant; win out.
to wish that the right side might prevail.
-
to use persuasion or inducement successfully.
He prevailed upon us to accompany him.
verb
-
to prove superior; gain mastery
skill will prevail
-
to be or appear as the most important feature; be prevalent
-
to exist widely; be in force
-
to succeed in persuading or inducing
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
prevailsimple
-
prevailssimple
-
have prevailedperfect
-
has prevailedperfect
-
am prevailingprogressive
-
are prevailingprogressive
-
is prevailingprogressive
-
have been prevailingperfect progressive
-
has been prevailingperfect progressive
Past
-
prevailedsimple
-
had prevailedperfect
-
was prevailingprogressive
-
were prevailingprogressive
-
had been prevailingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of prevail
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English prevayllen “to grow very strong,” from Latin praevalēre “to be more able,” equivalent to prae- “before, in front” + valēre “to be strong”; see pre-, prevalent
Explanation
Prevail means to successfully persuade someone of something. If you were a Presidential advisor and you convinced him to make a National Day of Pet Appreciation, then you prevailed upon him to recognize pets. Prevail can be used for different kinds of success. If you prevail upon someone, you have influence on them. If you prevail over someone, you win. Say you’re a big fan of a losing team. You might cheer, “Despite all odds, we will prevail!” To use prevail, there has to be some kind of contest or conflict. That could be internal, like when you have a pile of homework to do, but your desire to play video games prevails over your discipline.
Vocabulary lists containing prevail
List 1
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"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 12–15
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"The Hill We Climb," by Amanda Gorman
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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:
“It’s unclear which scenario will prevail, but we maintain cautious optimism. Why? Because going ahead with tariffs would exact a toll on both sides.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026
While Judge Biedscheid's order only demands Meta make changes in New Mexico, should the 30 states prevail in their separate lawsuit against Meta, it would almost certainly need to enact platform changes across the US.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
His approach posed threats to the Communist Party’s old guard and Zhu looked to the U.S. government to help him get China into the World Trade Organization, where international rules would prevail.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Waymo must stop using two Santa Monica charging stations overnight — for now — after a judge found the city might prevail in its contentious legal fight against the self-driving taxi company.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
“You certainly will meet them if I can prevail; and I shall call on Miss Bates in my way home.”
From "Emma" by Jane Austen
But nothing has changed about the platform’s devoted users, many of whom remain as inhospitable as ever to the kind of unchecked brand chatter that prevails elsewhere.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
The genre is varied, the casts inevitably fine and justice almost always prevails.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2026
Failure is fatal only when the chisel is abandoned and despair prevails.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
"It's a conflict between national security and historical transparency, and the former often prevails in Switzerland."
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
In public health projects in difficult locales, theory often prevails over practice.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
Even in Kosovo, a case often cited for air power’s capacity to force capitulation from an adversary, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization prevailed only once a ground invasion looked imminent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Looking ahead: “The labor market is stuck in the low-hire, low-fire environment that’s prevailed since last year,” said economist Sneha Puri of the Indeed job-search site.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026
Still, Pelosi prevailed, by less than 4,000 votes out of nearly 108,000 cast.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
But the lower house's broader approach demanding social media platforms refuse new users under 15 and suspend accounts belonging to children under that age prevailed.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
Things that should never have happened, that seemed out of place and wrong, these were what prevailed, what endured, in the end.
From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri
The prevailing strategy for how to pitch in 2026 is a bizarre and counterintuitive paradox.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
The bill only applies to specific developments, including those that are proposed on an graded infill site and those that pay construction workers a prevailing wage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
Researchers say the finding points to a surprising mechanism and challenges the prevailing idea that chronic viral reactivation occurs mainly because of immunosuppression.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
Flock Safety embodies the dishonesty that has been the prevailing theme of tech corporate communications and marketing for at least the past decade.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2026
“Influences prevailing, you know. Older influences hanging around,” he explained more fully.
From "The Haunting of Hill House" by Shirley Jackson
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.
