success

American  

[suhk-ses] / səkˈsɛs /

noun

successes plural

1. the favorable or prosperous termination of attempts or endeavors; the accomplishment of one's goals.

2. the attainment of wealth, position, honors, or the like.

   Synonyms:

   triumph, accomplishment, achievement

3. a performance or achievement that is marked by success, as by the attainment of honors.

   The play was an instant success.

4. a person or thing that has had success, as measured by attainment of goals, wealth, etc..

   She was a great success on the talk show.

5. Obsolete. outcome.

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success British  

/ səkˈsɛs /

noun

1. the favourable outcome of something attempted

2. the attainment of wealth, fame, etc

3. an action, performance, etc, that is characterized by success

4. a person or thing that is successful

5. obsolete any outcome

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonsuccess
  noun
• presuccess
  noun
• successlessness
  noun
• semisuccess
  adjective
• successless
  adjective
• successlessly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• successes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of success

First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin successus, equivalent to succēd-, stem of succēdere succeed + -tus suffix of verb action, with -dt- regularly becoming -ss-

Explanation

For some students, success in school means getting As and Bs. For others, it means getting straight As, starring in the school play, and winning the class election. Success means achieving a goal, and everyone's goals are different. We tend to think of success as a triumph or victory, but if you look at its linguistic roots in Latin, success literally just means "result." At some point several centuries ago people probably began using success as shorthand for "good success," and eventually they dropped the good altogether. That would explain why in formal settings you still occasionally hear the phrase "good success," even though we now think of all successes as good.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

success successes

As recently as the 1990s, Thailand’s plunging birthrate was celebrated as a success by demographers worried about overpopulation and resource scarcity.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026

Christopher Nolan's star-studded adaptation of "The Odyssey" has quickly become his latest box office success, capturing audiences and generating conversation around the world.

From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026

When Maeda joined Celtic as a relatively unknown J-League attacker in 2022, no one could have imagined the kind of success he would go on to have at the club.

From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026

With temperatures dipping around Madrid, "there is a real opportunity now to tackle this fire with some guarantee of success," the central government's delegate in the Spanish capital, Francisco Martin, told reporters late Friday.

From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026

So what protected Marina from being arrested during the Great Terror, if hard work, success, and national glory weren’t enough to keep you from suspicion?

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

These successes for both the men's and women's teams followed lifting numerous titles at youth level over the last decade.

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

To truly compete with SpaceX, China will need to refine its technology and ensure that its breakthrough launch is backed up by future successes.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026

Some argue that latter case is already closed, given the competitiveness of Pogacar’s era and his range of successes in everything from grand tours to one-day flyers like Milan San Remo.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

Pro-democracy rebels embedded with them to secure notable successes, including a landmark 2023 combined offensive that advanced to the brink of Mandalay, Myanmar's second city.

From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026

Small science had not quite emptied its quiver: it would produce a few more spectacular successes, again somewhat at the expense of the Rad Lab’s reputation.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Related Words

• accomplishment
• achievement
• advance
• benefit
• boom
• fame
• gain
• happiness
• profit
• progress
• prosperity
• realization
• triumph
• victory
• win