adjective
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having succeeded in one's endeavours
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marked by a favourable outcome
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having obtained fame, wealth, etc
Usage
Spelling tips for successful The word successful is hard to spell because it can be hard to know which letters are doubled. Both the c and the middle s are doubled, but the f and l are not. How to spell successful: To be a success, you need to see (two Cs) Some Smarts (two Ss). This reminds you that success is spelled with a double C in the middle and a double S at the end. To spell successful, you add the base word (success) to the suffix -ful.
Other Word Forms
- half-successful adjective
- half-successfully adverb
- half-successfulness noun
- nonsuccessful adjective
- nonsuccessfully adverb
- presuccessful adjective
- presuccessfully adverb
- quasi-successful adjective
- quasi-successfully adverb
- semisuccessful adjective
- semisuccessfully adverb
- successfully adverb
- successfulness noun
Etymology
Origin of successful
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.
Now the Munich-based company is targeting another attempt this March which, if successful, will be a giant leap for Europe's commercial space ambitions.
From BBC
Efforts to reach Hexa, which went dormant last year according to Hong Kong corporate filings, for comment weren’t successful.
It was hugely successful, but we had a flood nine months after we opened, which bankrupted us, theoretically bankrupt, but we were able to climb out.
The left-hander's successful recovery from injury was also underlined by the fact 19 of his 24 winners flew off his previously affected forehand side.
From BBC
Many of the lawsuits filed against oil and gas giants by state and local authorities are modeled on successful legal actions taken against the tobacco industry in the 1990s.
From Barron's
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.
