survive

[ ser-vahyv ]

See synonyms for: survive survived surviving on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),sur·vived, sur·viv·ing.

to remain alive after the death of someone, the cessation of something, or the occurrence of some event; continue to live: Few survived after the holocaust.
to remain or continue in existence or use: Ancient farming methods still survive in the Middle East.

to get along or remain healthy, happy, and unaffected in spite of some occurrence: She's surviving after the divorce.

verb (used with object),sur·vived, sur·viv·ing.

to continue to live or exist after the death, cessation, or occurrence of: His wife survived him. He survived the operation.
to endure or live through (an affliction, adversity, misery, etc.): She's survived two divorces.

Origin of survive

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Middle French survivre, from Latin supervīvere, equivalent to super-super- + vīvere “to live”; see sur-¹, vivid

synonym study For survive

1. Survive, outlive refer to remaining alive longer than someone else or after some event. Survive usually means to succeed in keeping alive against odds, to live after some event that has threatened one: to survive an automobile accident. It is also used of living longer than another person (usually a relative), but, today, mainly in the passive, as in the fixed expression: The deceased is survived by his wife and children. Outlive stresses capacity for endurance, the time element, and sometimes a sense of competition: He outlived all his enemies. It is also used, however, of a person or object that has lived or lasted beyond a certain point: He has outlived his usefulness.

Other words for survive

1	persist, succeed

See synonyms for survive on Thesaurus.com

Other words from survive

self-sur·viv·ing, adjective
un·sur·vived, adjective
un·sur·viv·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use survive in a sentence

Think of all the places you want to survive and start orderingSupporting restaurants, if you have the financial means, feels more important now than ever before.
Overwhelmed by How to Help the Restaurant Industry? Make a List. | Erin DeJesus | November 20, 2020 | Eater
Instead, she said she has spent two weeks calling doctors and worrying about whether Mikula would survive her infection.
As her partner struggles with covid-19, a quarantined Rachel Maddow pleads: ‘Don’t get this thing’ | Katie Shepherd | November 20, 2020 | Washington Post
He said he hopes the Boy Scouts survive bankruptcy, but only after they are reorganized and held accountable.
Boy Scouts must settle 95,000 abuse claims by next summer — or risk running out of cash | Samantha Schmidt | November 19, 2020 | Washington Post
Given such obstacles, 2020 was the year that the comics industry could have taken cover, merely trying to survive.
2020 graphic novels and comic books: Five trends that defined the year | Michael Cavna | November 19, 2020 | Washington Post
“Dear Edward,” by Ann NapolitanoA young boy, after surviving a plane crash that orphaned him, weathers public fascination as he tries to find a way forward.
50 notable works of fiction in 2020 | | November 19, 2020 | Washington Post

Drugeon survived an airstrike last year and is believed to be still at large, officials have said.
U.S. Spies See Al Qaeda Fingerprints on Paris Massacre | Shane Harris, Nancy A. Youssef | January 8, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
All 101 passengers survived but four were seriously injured.
Who Will Get AsiaAir 8501’s Black Boxes? | Clive Irving | December 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The follow-up story is how those who survived both the competitive onslaught, as well as the recession, have adapted.
Best Buy Punches Back at Amazon | William O’Connor | December 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The wine cellar—one of the best in the world—survived World War II and is guarded around the clock.
Inside The World’s 10 Oldest Restaurants | Justin Jones | December 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Still, a handful of centuries-old establishments have survived and housed some pretty phenomenal history.
Inside The World’s 10 Oldest Restaurants | Justin Jones | December 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Even as a grown man his interest in the unhappy prince survived.
The Life & Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky | Modeste Tchaikovsky
Some he ordered off to the stables to get horses, for if Garnache had survived his leap and swum the moat, they must give chase.
St. Martin's Summer | Rafael Sabatini
She survived him for quite a long period and helped her son Phileas win his success.
Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z | Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois Christophe
India is really a republican country, and it is because it is that, that it has survived every shock hitherto delivered.
Third class in Indian railways | Mahatma Gandhi
Other species survived by a retreat to more tropical regions, to return after the invasion had spent its force.
Man And His Ancestor | Charles Morris

British Dictionary definitions for survive

survive

/ (səˈvaɪv) /

verb

(tr) to live after the death of (another): he survived his wife by 12 years
to continue in existence or use after (a passage of time, an adversity, etc)

informal to endure (something): I don't know how I survive such an awful job

Origin of survive

C15: from Old French sourvivre, from Latin supervīvere, from super- + vīvere to live

Derived forms of survive

survivable, adjective
survivability, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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