succeed
Americanverb (used without object)
-
to happen or terminate according to desire; turn out successfully; have the desired result.
Our efforts succeeded.
- Antonyms:
- fail
-
to thrive, prosper, grow, or the like.
Grass will not succeed in this dry soil.
- Antonyms:
- fail
-
to accomplish what is attempted or intended.
We succeeded in our efforts to start the car.
- Antonyms:
- fail
-
to attain success in some popularly recognized form, as wealth or standing.
The class voted him the one most likely to succeed.
- Antonyms:
- fail
-
to follow or replace another by descent, election, appointment, etc. (often followed byto ).
-
to come next after something else in an order or series.
verb (used with object)
-
to come after and take the place of, as in an office or estate.
-
to come next after in an order or series, or in the course of events; follow.
- Antonyms:
- precede
verb
-
(intr) to accomplish an aim, esp in the manner desired
he succeeded in winning
-
(intr) to happen in the manner desired
the plan succeeded
-
(intr) to acquit oneself satisfactorily or do well, as in a specified field
to succeed in publishing
-
to come next in order (after someone or something)
-
to take over an office, post, etc (from a person)
he succeeded to the vice presidency
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to come into possession (of property, etc); inherit
-
(intr) to have a result according to a specified manner
the plan succeeded badly
-
(intr) to devolve upon
the estate succeeded to his son
Synonym Usage
Succeed, flourish, prosper, thrive mean to do well. To succeed is to turn out well, to attain a goal: It is everyone's wish to succeed in life. To flourish is to give evidence of success or a ripe development of power, reputation, etc.: Culture flourishes among free people. To prosper is to achieve and enjoy material success: He prospered but was still discontented. Thrive suggests vigorous growth and development such as results from natural vitality or favorable conditions: The children thrived in the sunshine. See follow.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
have succeededperfect
-
has succeededperfect 3rd person singular
-
am succeedingprogressive 1st person singular
-
are succeedingprogressive
-
has been succeedingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
have been succeedingperfect progressive
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succeedssingular 3rd person
-
succeedingparticiple
-
is succeedingprogressive 3rd person singular
Past
-
had succeededperfect
-
were succeedingprogressive plural
-
had been succeedingperfect progressive
-
was succeedingprogressive singular
-
succeededsimple
-
succeededparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of succeed
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English succeden from Old French succeder, from Latin succēdere “to go (from) under, follow, prosper,” equivalent to suc- suc- + cēdere “to go” ( see cede)
Explanation
When you succeed at something, you reach a goal or do really well. If you practice speaking Arabic every day, you are likely to succeed at becoming fluent in this language. When you succeed, you achieve the result you hope for, but another way to use succeed is to describe taking over a position. A prince who will inherit his father's kingdom will succeed his father one day, and a new high school principal can be said to succeed the old one. The Latin root of succeed is succedere, come close after.
Vocabulary lists containing succeed
"The Civil Rights Movement"
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act IV
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"Kids Like Me: Voices of the Immigrant Experience"
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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.
Oil prices were edging down early on Tuesday as President Donald Trump appeared to succeed in persuading Israel and Iran to pause fighting.
From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026
This was in response to his grandfather’s quotation: “You can never succeed when you have hate on your mind.”
From Salon • Jun. 9, 2026
"With an Ajax 2 package of upgrades now in development at an unknown cost, the PAC awaits to see, more in hope than expectation, whether these endeavours will succeed," the report states.
From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026
It will also allow Xi to position himself as the essential intermediary should Trump succeed at reviving diplomacy with Kim.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026
Some children, however, require more extensive modifications to the curriculum in order to succeed.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
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.
