thrive
Americanverb (used without object)
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thrives,
present (3rd person singular)
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thrived,
past participle, past
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throve,
past (Archaic)
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thriven,
past participle (Archaic)
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thriving
present participle
verb phrase
verb
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to grow strongly and vigorously
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to do well; prosper
Usage
What does thrive mean? To thrive is to grow and develop strongly. This sense of the word can be applied to people as well as other living things, including animals and plants. Thrive can also mean to be successful, to be fulfilled, or to develop successfully. Both senses of thrive are often discussed alongside the specific conditions, environment, or situation that allow or help someone or something to thrive. For example, babies thrive in loving homes with the proper nutrition and care. Wild animals tend to thrive when their natural habitat is preserved. Plants thrive when they receive the right amount of sunlight and water. A person might begin to thrive in their career when they work at a place where their talents are appreciated and they’re given the freedom to try new things. The adjective thriving can be used to describe someone or something that is developing successfully or that is being successful. Example: Being around other creative people really helps my writing thrive.
Synonym Usage
See succeed.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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thrivesimple
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thrivessimple
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have thrivedperfect
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have thrivenperfect
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has thrivedperfect
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has thrivenperfect
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am thrivingprogressive
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are thrivingprogressive
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is thrivingprogressive
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have been thrivingperfect progressive
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has been thrivingperfect progressive
Past
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thrivedsimple
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throvesimple
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had thrivedperfect
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had thrivenperfect
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was thrivingprogressive
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were thrivingprogressive
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had been thrivingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of thrive
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English thriven, from Old Norse thrīfast “to thrive,” reflexive of thrīfa “to grasp”
Explanation
To thrive is to do well or flourish. If your new cookie delivery business thrives, you'll be rolling in dough — not literally, of course. The verb thrive means to flourish or grow vigorously, and it can be applied to something like a business or to the health of someone or something. Plants can thrive in a greenhouse, and children can thrive if they eat well and exercise. To thrive on or in something can also be used more figuratively — people can thrive on music, listening to their favorite songs all day and others can thrive on art, visiting their favorite galleries and museums.
Vocabulary lists containing thrive
List 3
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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.
See Examples For:
They included members of the Pooideae subfamily, which favor temperate or cool conditions, as well as Panicoideae grasses, which generally thrive in warmer and more humid environments.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 15, 2026
And even closer to home, the WSJ talked with a variety of future-of-work experts about the best college majors to not only survive but thrive in the AI era.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
It is hoped the pilot will improve the support offered to children in care, so they can thrive in an educational environment.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
The illegal production of cigarettes is rising as a whole in the EU, as poor coordination between countries is helping counterfeiters thrive, an official report said on Tuesday.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
Hamm said that feeling persists and thrives today.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
The herd at Smiling Buddha Yaks thrives in Colorado’s alpine climate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
Stacks of books, tables littered with essays and commentaries, piles of Jewish magazines—these Orthodox homes form one of the few demographics where the printed word still thrives.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
As a facultative anaerobic bacterium, it thrives in both oxygen rich and oxygen poor environments, allowing it to multiply inside the oxygen deprived regions commonly found within tumors.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 10, 2026
A community thrives when each member does what he or she is best at.
From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman
A fan favourite, Tiafoe thrived off the energy of the New York crowd as he then got the better of the tie-break to seal his fourth five-set victory at a major in 2026.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
Kane, not known for his dribbling - and by his own admission "not the fastest", has thrived on his own terms.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
But find me the CEOs who have built something bigger, thrived in a period when others struggled.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 4, 2026
He praised Tanner Scott, who has thrived in that role.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
Born prematurely on July 28, 1926, her son John Ramsay thrived.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
Most of what we could call our charismatic megaflora was hauled in here from elsewhere, and it throve.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2021
Japan’s economy wilted while Germany’s throve, adding several hundred thousand clean-energy jobs—part of the energy transition’s net macroeconomic benefit.
From Forbes ● Jun. 28, 2014
It’s a reminder, however, that even in the most horrific of circumstances, something remarkable more than survived; it throve and grew and eventually reached around the Earth.
From Salon ● Dec. 26, 2013
The U.S. people, high & low, throve on hope, withered on gloom.
From Time Magazine Archive
Orchids and parasites sucked the life blood from the trees, and throve upon their ruin; creepers strangled them and tore them down half-rotten.
From Long Odds by Harold Bindloss
In England, gorillas have recently lived and thriven amazingly because the keepers now put plate glass between them and the staring crowds.
From Time Magazine Archive
Honour and loyalty would have thriven without the chivalrous poets, as they had thriven before them in every nation on earth.
From Medieval English Literature Home University of Modern Knowledge #43 by W. P. (William Paton) Ker
They seem not to have thriven on city air.”
From In Wild Rose Time by Amanda M. Douglas
He that would thrive He that would thrive, Must rise at five; He that hath thriven, May lie till seven; And he that by the plough would thrive, Himself must either hold or drive.
From National Rhymes of the Nursery by Various
The hedges and walls of Honeysuckle, Roses, and other flowering vines that surround this garden have thriven wonderfully in the five years of the garden's life, and look like settings of many years.
From Old-Time Gardens Newly Set Forth by Alice Morse Earle
Data centers have become a visible symbol of the divide between those who are thriving in the current economy and those who aren’t, she noted.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026
Finance Minister Elin Jones said this would be paid for by an increase in rates for the largest businesses to help nurture "thriving high streets" in Welsh communities.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Masaya has since recovered well, and her new daughter is thriving alongside her.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 8, 2026
Leading industrialist Jacob Wallenberg told the Financial Times he was "deeply concerned" about what that would mean for the thriving tech sector.
From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026
A thriving commercial center had taken root on the south side of the river, replete with stately brick hotels, sturdy limestone banks, and a wide variety of fine emporiums and reputable mercantile establishments.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
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.
