success

noun

suc·cess | \ sək-ˈses

Definition of success

1 obsolete : outcome, result

2a : degree or measure of succeeding

b : favorable or desired outcome also : the attainment of wealth, favor, or eminence

3 : one that succeeds

Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More about success

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Examples of success in a Sentence

An enormous popular and critical success, The Liars' Club was credited with (or blamed for) launching a new wave of memoir-writing. (Karr deflects this accusation: "I think memoir started with St. Augustine," she told Salon in 1997.) — Mollie Wilson O'Reilly, Commonweal, 23 Oct. 2009 Fred tries to keep up his end of the conversation, but without much success; he has never grown bulbs, cooked veal, seen a film by Fassbinder, etc. He feels provincial and out of it … — Alison Lurie, Foreign Affairs, 2006 Since I was interested in finding out about the successes as well as the failures disabled women experience in the world, I interviewed women who had some work experience, although it was often part-time work and sometimes interrupted. — Mary Grimley Mason, Working Against Odds, 2004 The necessaries of life for man in this climate may, accurately enough, be distributed under the several heads of Food, Shelter, Clothing, and Fuel; for not till we have secured these are we prepared to entertain the true problems of life with freedom and a prospect of success. — Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854 Success came easily to him. She is country music's most recent success. The growth of the tourism industry is one of the city's great successes.

Recent Examples on the Web

In spite of this success, Sam & Max stumbled after the first game. — Michael Thompson, Ars Technica, "Drawn together: The love affair between comics and games," 24 Dec. 2018 Galloway explained that part of Nadella’s success is diversifying Microsoft’s business into enough verticals that the company hasn’t been as impacted by tech stocks’ recent decline. — Eric Johnson, Recode, "Microsoft is more valuable than Apple again. Why?," 30 Nov. 2018 And don't think Lana's jealous of her costar's success. — Carolyn Twersky, Seventeen, "Lana Condor's Fans Think She Should Be Getting as Many Opportunities as Noah Centineo," 3 Oct. 2018 Both have a clearer path to success now that Democrats have taken control of the state Senate, putting Mr. Cuomo’s party at the helm of both houses of the Legislature. — Jimmy Vielkind, WSJ, "Cuomo Lays Out His Third-Term Priorities," 17 Dec. 2018 Because the original was such a massive success, the National Lampoon franchise awarded Randy Quaid (who plays Cousin Eddie) the starring role in Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie's Island Adventure. — Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "Every Weird Thing You Never Realized About National Lampoon's 'Christmas Vacation'," 2 Dec. 2018 Ross, who is now the president of the Steve Ross Agency LLC, said the quality of the writing is key to a campaign book’s success. — Juana Summers, The Seattle Times, "Write then run: Dems pen books while weighing 2020 campaigns," 28 Nov. 2018 GreenTechMedia notes that Energy Vault has built a 1/7-scale version in Switzerland, but a good idea and a small demo don't necessarily translate to immediate success. — Megan Geuss, Ars Technica, "Battery idea: Hydroelectric pumped storage, but with bricks," 18 Nov. 2018 Blake Shelton may be a successful country star (and hold the record as the coach with the most victories on The Voice), but his road to success hasn’t been without its difficult moments. — Megan Stein, Country Living, "Blake Shelton Opens Up About the Heartbreaking Loss of His Brother," 2 Oct. 2018

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

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Dictionary Entries near success

successional speciation

Statistics for success

Last Updated

11 Jan 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for success

The first known use of success was in 1537

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More Definitions for success

success

noun

English Language Learners Definition of success

: the fact of getting or achieving wealth, respect, or fame

: the correct or desired result of an attempt

: someone or something that is successful : a person or thing that succeeds

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

success

noun

suc·cess | \ sək-ˈses

Kids Definition of success

1 : satisfactory completion of something But you must, when you are calculating the odds of the mouse's success, factor in his love for the princess.— Kate DiCamillo, The Tale of Despereaux

2 : the gaining of wealth, respect, or fame

3 : a person or thing that succeeds The show was a success.