outlive

verb

out·​live ˌau̇t-ˈliv 

outlived; outliving; outlives

transitive verb

1

: to live beyond or longer than

outlived most of his friends

outlive its usefulness

2

: to survive the effects of

Universities … outlive many political and social changes.

—J. B. Conant

Synonyms of outlive

• survive
• outlast

Examples of outlive in a Sentence

No mother wants to outlive her children.

He outlived his wife by 10 years.

Recent Examples on the Web

Research cited by the site suggests 30-year-old vegetarian Adventists will likely outlive their meat-eating counterparts by as many as eight years. — Samantha Agate, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 July 2026

She’s represented here by a woman dematerializing headfirst, seemingly outlived only by her pendulous breasts, and a sparse landscape where a spectral figure peeks up from the bottom edge. — Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 15 July 2026

Natasha Gelman died in Mexico in 1998, having outlived her husband by 12 years. — Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2026

Someone with several million in assets, for instance, may not have to worry about outliving their savings. — David Chavern, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing outlive

• outlive one's usefulness

Rhymes for outlive

• argive
• forgive
• ogive
• relive
• corroborative
• determinative
• germinative
• transformative
• give
• sieve
• resistive

Kids Definition

outlive

verb

out·​live (ˈ)au̇t-ˈliv 

: to live longer than : outlast