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

Before this, Rocket Lab also successfully demonstrated a guided reentry of the Electron rocket during missions in December and January, proving that the first-stage booster could survive reentry through the atmosphere.
Rocket Lab has successfully recovered a booster for the first time | Neel Patel | November 20, 2020 | MIT Technology Review
Most and possibly all local councils may well cease to survive in their current form.
Boy Scouts must settle 95,000 abuse claims by next summer — or risk running out of cash | Samantha Schmidt | November 19, 2020 | Washington Post
They survive as loaders, hauling fruits and vegetables, or pull rickshaws.
Asia’s biggest climate migration | Konstantin Kakaes | November 19, 2020 | MIT Technology Review
I don’t think there’s a lot of good examples of consumer products that are free, that survive if people don’t like them, don’t like the companies or think they’re bad.
EmTech Stage: Facebook’s CTO on misinformation | Tate Ryan-Mosley | November 18, 2020 | MIT Technology Review
Those challenges make it harder or easier for some individuals in a group to survive.
Scientists Say: Evolution | Bethany Brookshire | November 16, 2020 | Science News For Students

The crew wear parachutes and surviving vehicle breakup would then be a matter of chance as to whether or not you get thrown free.
Can Anyone Make Space Safe for Civilians? | Clive Irving | November 4, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The gosling's best chance at surviving the jump is to bounce off the cliff on its soft belly.
Barnacle Gosling’s Death-Defying Cliff Dive | Alex Chancey, The Daily Beast Video | October 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Without such action, they fear, many of their surviving troops may be lured into the ranks of ISIS.
The Battle for Aleppo: A Decisive Fight for ISIS, Assad, and the USA | Jamie Dettmer | October 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
He spoke of surviving a stabbing in 1958 when a woman attacked him at a book-signing.
Tavis Smiley Humanely Chronicles MLK’s Sad Last Year | Scott Porch | October 16, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
My father lost his last surviving sibling, my Aunt Sally, in 2007.
Tom Sizemore’s Revenge: On Tom Cruise’s Scientology Recruitment, Drugs, and Craving a Comeback | Marlow Stern | September 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
There was too much of the old law with its thunders, too much of fiery Elijah, surviving in John.
Solomon and Solomonic Literature | Moncure Daniel Conway
He was the last surviving officer of the Delaware regiment in the revolutionary army.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology | Joel Munsell
Succor could not arrive, he argued, and they were in duty bound to save the surviving civilians and the women and children.
The Red Year | Louis Tracy
The Americans demanded the surrender of the Arsenal, the Admiral, and the surviving crews of the destroyed fleet.
The Philippine Islands | John Foreman
And on the death of a partner the surviving partner has the right to represent the partnership and vote on its stock.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman | Albert Sidney Bolles

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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