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succeed

verb
suc·​ceed | \sək-ˈsēd \
succeeded; succeeding; succeeds

Definition of succeed 

intransitive verb

1a : to come next after another in office or position or in possession of an estate especially : to inherit sovereignty, rank, or title

b : to follow after another in order

2a : to turn out well

b : to attain a desired object or end students who succeed in college

3 obsolete : to pass to a person by inheritance

transitive verb

1 : to follow in sequence and especially immediately

2 : to come after as heir or successor

Other Words from succeed Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym Example Sentences Learn More about succeed

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Other Words from succeed

succeeder noun

Choose the Right Synonym for succeed

follow, succeed, ensue, supervene mean to come after something or someone. follow may apply to a coming after in time, position, or logical sequence. speeches followed the dinner succeed implies a coming after immediately in a sequence determined by natural order, inheritance, election, or laws of rank. she succeeded her father as head of the business ensue commonly suggests a logical consequence or naturally expected development. after the talk a general discussion ensued supervene suggests the following or beginning of something unforeseen or unpredictable. unable to continue because of supervening circumstances

Examples of succeed in a Sentence

Ghosh's remarkable detective work succeeds in rescuing an entire group of marginalized figures from British and South Asian amnesia, if not outright denial. — Maya Jasanoff, New York Review of Books, 18 Dec. 2008 Enter Gordon Brown. Journalistic legend has it that, over dinner in a trendy London restaurant as long ago as 1994, the two of them settled that Blair would lead the Labour party for an unspecified length of time and Brown would then succeed him. — David Pryce-Jones, National Review, 28 May 2007 Maguire, a freelance writer who specializes in culture and technology and recently published a book about spelling bees, paints a vivid portrait of Sullivan as a tough-minded micromanager who tightly controlled every aspect of his show, even telling Ella Fitzgerald what to sing. Behind the avuncular, slightly befuddled façade viewers knew, he writes, was a man consumed by ambition and driven to succeed at any cost. — Peter Keepnews, New York Times Book Review, 11 June 2006 You can succeed where others failed. The plan just might succeed. Their attempt seemed unlikely to succeed. Both of them have ambitions to succeed the prime minister. She will succeed him as chair of the committee. The Queen died and was succeeded by James I. James I succeeded to the throne upon the Queen's death in 1603.
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Recent Examples on the Web

 Grant-writers also may utilize professional connections to best understand how to submit proposals most likely to succeed. — Ted Slowik, Daily Southtown, "Slowik: Educators seek to continue early-childhood services despite funding cut," 27 June 2018 Rather, this is about a minority trying to change the status quo, and succeeding by being unrelenting. — David Noonan, Scientific American, "The 25% Revolution—How Big Does a Minority Have to Be to Reshape Society?," 8 June 2018 Into the light Divers succeeded in rescuing 12 boys and their football coach from a cave in Thailand where they had become trapped by a flash flood. — The Economist, "Politics this week," 12 July 2018 The mayor has ultimately succeeded in getting attention for his trip — but not for the intended reasons. — New York Times, "Federal Officials Claim de Blasio Crossed Border Illegally," 11 July 2018 Northern Kentucky Health Department succeeded in 2016 in establishing a program in a little city in Grant County but failed in its three biggest counties, Boone, Campell and Kenton. — Terry Demio, Cincinnati.com, "Living with HIV: Fueled by heroin, HIV makes an alarming resurgence in Cincinnati," 11 July 2018 And oddly enough, the two-song rollout reflects a strategy superstars like Drake, Ed Sheeran, the Weeknd, and Camila Cabello have succeeded with in recent years. — Chris Payne, Billboard, "Twenty One Pilots Sound Unconcerned With Pop Success on New Songs (Though 'Trench' Might Be Huge Anyway)," 11 July 2018 Baseball, at the moment, is not succeeding in the fun department. — Nick Canepa, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Can soccer ever be in the Big Three?," 2 July 2018 But season two never succeeds in finding something as interesting as Ruth and Debbie’s conflict to slide into center stage. — Todd Vanderwerff, Vox, "GLOW season 2 is less than the sum of its parts. But those parts are amazing.," 29 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'succeed.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of succeed

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

History and Etymology for succeed

Middle English succeden, from Anglo-French succeeder, from Latin succedere to go up, follow after, succeed, from sub- near + cedere to go — more at sub-

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Statistics for succeed

Last Updated

11 Nov 2018

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for succeed

The first known use of succeed was in the 14th century

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More Definitions for succeed

succeed

verb

English Language Learners Definition of succeed

: to do what you are trying to do : to achieve the correct or desired result

: to happen in the planned or desired way

: to come after (something) in a series

See the full definition for succeed in the English Language Learners Dictionary

succeed

verb
suc·​ceed | \sək-ˈsēd \
succeeded; succeeding

Kids Definition of succeed

1 : to achieve a desired result : be successful Half of them wanted me to mess up, and half of them wanted me to succeed.— Jack Gantos, Joey Pigza Loses Control

2 : to turn out well The plan succeeded.

3 : to come after : follow This new model of car succeeds the old one.

4 : to come next after another person in office or position

succeed

intransitive verb
suc·​ceed | \sək-ˈsēd \

Legal Definition of succeed 

1 : to come next after another in office or position

2a : to take something by succession succeeded to his mother's estate

b : to acquire the rights, obligations, and charges of a decedent in property comprising an estate the heir, who accepts, is considered as having succeeded to the deceased from the moment of his death — Louisiana Civil Code

transitive verb

1 : to follow in sequence and especially immediately

2 : to come after as heir or successor

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More from Merriam-Webster on succeed

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for succeed

Spanish Central: Translation of succeed

Nglish: Translation of succeed for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of succeed for Arabic Speakers

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