succulent

American  

[suhk-yuh-luhnt] / ˈsʌk jə lənt /

adjective

1. full of juice; juicy.

2. rich in desirable qualities.

3. affording mental nourishment.

4. (of a plant) having fleshy and juicy tissues.

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noun

• succulents
  plural

1. a succulent plant, as a sedum or cactus.

succulent British  

/ ˈsʌkjʊlənt /

adjective

1. abundant in juices; juicy

2. (of plants) having thick fleshy leaves or stems

3. informal stimulating interest, desire, etc

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noun

1. a plant that is able to exist in arid or salty conditions by using water stored in its fleshy tissues

succulent Scientific  

/ sŭk′yə-lənt /

1. Any of various plants having fleshy leaves or stems that store water. Cacti and the jade plant are succulents. Succulents are usually adapted to drier environments and display other characteristics that reduce water loss, such as waxy coatings on leaves and stems, fewer stomata than occur on other plants, and stout, rounded stems that minimize surface area.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• succulence
  noun
• succulency
  noun
• unsucculent
  adjective
• succulently
  adverb
• unsucculently
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• succulents
  plural

Etymology

Origin of succulent

1595–1605; < Late Latin sūculentus, equivalent to Latin sūc ( us ), succus juice + -ulentus -ulent

Explanation

Succulent means "juicy" and is often used to describe food. Think a succulent piece of meat, or berries so succulent you’re left sucking juice off your fingertips when you eat them. You can think of the word suck as hiding inside succulent––an orange you could pierce with a straw and suck the juice out of is succulent indeed. Or remember Desert Survival 101––find a cactus, an aloe, or another of the water-retaining plants known as succulents and drink from them.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

succulent succulents

Like, the meat of creativity in styling is small, but it’s succulent, and it’s enough to get me by.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

Hunched over sizzling grills and shrouded in smoke, trainees at the Yueyang Barbecue Academy in southern China roast skewer after skewer of succulent beef tendon, perfecting the skills that could land them a restaurant job.

From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026

Stewing a piece of meat until it transforms from leather into something tender and succulent.

From Salon ● Dec. 28, 2025

Marked by notes of spice and cherry, the deep red wine is soft, succulent and eminently drinkable—a wine for a special occasion or a Tuesday night with friends.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 22, 2025

She gulped the air like water, the night sky the best meal she had ever had, the stars made succulent and ripe after her time below.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead

Perea, who describes himself as a bargain shopper, is passionate about repurposing whatever he can; many of the succulents at the stadium came from his own clippings.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026

The spiky succulents are signifiers of what makes the desert special to people, said poet Ruth Nolan, the Mojave Desert literary laureate.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026

Rust-colored mountains tower on the horizon, pale-green succulents defy the parched earth, Spanish-style shingles fill the scenery.

From Slate ● Feb. 23, 2026

For others, like cacti and succulents, Clare says we mistakenly drown them by unnecessarily watering them.

From BBC ● Jan. 14, 2026

Mom stared at her succulents on the kitchen counter.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

Related Words

• luscious
• moist
• tasty
• yummy