prosperous

adjective

pros·​per·​ous ˈprä-sp(ə-)rəs 

1

: auspicious, favorable

2

a

: marked by success or economic well-being

b

: enjoying vigorous and healthy growth : flourishing

prosperously adverb

prosperousness noun

Synonyms of prosperous

• thriving
• prospering
• successful
• wealthy
• golden
• booming

Examples of prosperous in a Sentence

The company had a prosperous year.

He predicted a prosperous future.

Recent Examples on the Web

Offal fell out of favor in America for several reasons, including its association with poverty and wartime rationing in the prosperous era that followed World War II, according to The Takeout. —Teresa Mull, FOXNews.com, 18 May 2026

Parting Thoughts The most prosperous will not simply be those who produce the most, but rather, those who can produce the right compounds, at the right quality, at the right scale and with the right cost profile. —Thomas Andersen, Rolling Stone, 14 May 2026

But in Iran, the war has marked another step in the ruin of a once large and prosperous middle class following decades of sanctions. —ABC News, 13 May 2026

Looking instead at velocity to see not how far, but how fast obesity is rising — or not — revealed rates that continue to climb in most low- and middle-income countries, but are flattening in most high-income countries and possibly declining in a few of those more prosperous places. —Elizabeth Cooney, STAT, 13 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin prosperus "agreeable to one's wishes, successful, (of omens) propitious" (going back to *pro-sparo-, from pro- pro- entry 2 + *sparo-, going back to Indo-European *sph₁-ró- "thriving") + -ous -ous — more at speed entry 1

Note: An apparently traditional explanation is recorded by the fourth/fifth century grammarian Nonius Marcellus, namely, that prosperus was in origin from the phrase prō spērē "in conformity with one's hope" (spērē being taken as a variant of spē, ablative of spēs "hope"), though this may best be regarded as a folk etymology. It fails to account for the short e in prosperus.

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

prosperous

adjective

pros·​per·​ous ˈpräs-p(ə-)rəs 

1

: having or showing success or financial good fortune

2

: strong and healthy in growth

prosperously adverb