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

• 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

Cannon liked the idea of the bag outliving its wearer. —Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 8 July 2025

Age is an important factor as well since your executor obviously needs to outlive you both. —Steve Hruby, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025

Factories outlive their products, warehouses their storage purposes, printing plants their publications, and houses of worship their congregations. —Justin Davidson, Curbed, 27 June 2025

As new innovations take hold and produce positive results, remember to prune old practices that are no longer working or have outlived their purpose. —Michael B. Horn, Forbes.com, 21 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing outlive

• outlive one's usefulness

Rhymes for outlive

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

Kids Definition

outlive

verb

out·​live (ˈ)au̇t-ˈliv 

: to live longer than : outlast