prosper
Americanverb (used without object)
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prospers,
present (3rd person singular)
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prospered,
past participle, past
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prospering
present participle
verb (used with object)
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prospers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
prospered,
past participle, past
-
prospering
present participle
verb
Usage
What does prosper mean? Prosper means to be successful or fortunate, especially in a financial or material way. Prosper often implies success in terms of wealth, health, and happiness. But it can also be used broadly, much like the words succeed, thrive, and flourish. You can say that someone is prospering in the present, but the word is perhaps most commonly used in the context of what will happen in the future. Prosper is associated with its use in the phrase “live long and prosper,” the catchphrase of the character Spock in the Star Trek series of TV shows and movies. Someone who prospers can be described as prosperous. The noun prosperity refers to a state of success. Example: If we can continue to maintain this level of quality, our company will continue to prosper.
Synonym Usage
See succeed.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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prospersimple
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prosperssimple
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have prosperedperfect
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has prosperedperfect
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am prosperingprogressive
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are prosperingprogressive
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is prosperingprogressive
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have been prosperingperfect progressive
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has been prosperingperfect progressive
Past
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prosperedsimple
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had prosperedperfect
-
was prosperingprogressive
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were prosperingprogressive
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had been prosperingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of prosper
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English prosperen, Old French prosperer, from Latin prosperāre “to make happy,” derivative of prosperus prosperous
Explanation
As any fan of Star Trek knows, “live long and prosper” is good advice. The verb prosper means to do well, succeed, or thrive. The verb prosper commonly means to generate wealth, as in “she hopes to prosper from her new investments.” But more generally it means “grow stronger” or "flourish" — crops will prosper when they have adequate sun and water, and rescued animals can prosper in a loving home. You can also prosper from good advice or a wise decision: for example, “cheaters never prosper” is one piece of advice that might help you prosper.
Vocabulary lists containing prosper
NAEP Test Words
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The Call of the Wild
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Donald Trump Inauguration Address- January 20, 2017
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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:
“We can make it so they can prosper, but we prosper with them,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
This particular grift may have failed, but in a world built on massive structural inequality, grifters tend to prosper.
From Salon ● Aug. 2, 2026
In Psalm 73, Asaph pleads with God, wondering why good men suffer while the wicked prosper.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
Officials in Nevada, where casinos prosper, have emerged as some of the most forceful opponents of prediction markets.
From Barron's ● May 14, 2026
Many parents seem to believe that a child cannot prosper unless it is hitched to the right name; names are seen to carry great aesthetic or even predictive powers.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
Yet to our mind the remarkable news of this anniversary is that our free republic has stood for a quarter millennium and prospers still.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
Western analysts say the counteroffensive, even if it prospers, won’t end the war which started with Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 4, 2023
Now the area prospers largely from the tourist trade.
From Seattle Times ● May 22, 2023
Patriotism is wanting to make your city better so that it prospers.
From BBC ● Dec. 20, 2022
She nodded and said, “I’m old and blind, but I still hear things. A fool never prospers in peace. Do you know what their magic is?”
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Unyoked from racial prejudices and prohibitions, Eston’s progeny prospered.
From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026
Gordon Peterson prospered as a real-estate developer in Kansas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
There were busts as well as booms - oil has always been a volatile commodity - but on the whole Aberdeen prospered, with the Granite City acquiring a new nickname: Europe's oil capital.
From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2026
Under Bedford’s able leadership, England’s cause initially prospered.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 11, 2026
The trees prospered, the grazers were healthy, and even if once in a while the tualapi came, our numbers and theirs remained constant.
From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman
Despite rising computer-memory costs and a tight supply chain that have been constraining phone sales, the company is prospering.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
Fundamentally superior stocks are prospering from a stunning earnings environment as well as a booming domestic economy.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 13, 2026
Brazil is pushing the idea of building a prospering economy by sustainably using natural resources, preserving nature to protect the vitality of the land, and developing valuable products including fuels, pharmaceuticals, and foods.
From BBC ● Nov. 16, 2025
AEG is prospering by executing a fairly simple business plan, said Andrew Zimbalist, professor emeritus of economics at Smith College.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2025
I have now concluded, sir,” said Joe, rising from his chair, “and, Pip, I wish you ever well and ever prospering to a greater and a greater height.”
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
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.
