successful

play

adjective suc·cess·ful \ -fəl \

Definition of successful

1 :resulting or terminating in success

a successful attempt

2 :gaining or having gained success

a successful investor

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successfully

play \-fə-lē\ adverb

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successfulness

noun

See successful defined for English-language learners

See successful defined for kids

Examples of successful in a Sentence

the play had a successful run on Broadway
sold their successful dry-cleaning business and retired to Hawaii

Recent Examples of successful from the Web

Tahoma: The Bears are hoping to parlay a successful offseason into a return to the playoffs after losing a play-in game to Federal Way last fall and finishing a disappointing 3-7.

— sandy ringer, The Seattle Times, "NPSL Cascade Division Preview: Victor Torres bounced around, but he found a home on Mount Rainier," 30 Aug. 2017
The testing proved successful, leading authorities to the Brinks’ two boxer dogs.

— max londberg, kansascity, "Hounds roamed a Missouri town, and a bicyclist was killed. Now dog owners owe $300,000," 30 Aug. 2017
To realize this dream, however, requires that North Korea follow the other Asian countries’ successful integration into global markets.

— stephan haggard, sandiegouniontribune.com, "What is North Korea's goal with missile tests? Perhaps not what you think," 29 Aug. 2017
The Oneida, who were divided between native and Christian factions, were somewhat less successful.

— Longreads, "America’s First Addiction Epidemic," 29 Aug. 2017
Bob Corker may think that Trump needs to demonstrate stability to be successful — but that’s because Corker is defining success in legislative terms.

— eric levitz, Daily Intelligencer, "President Proves He’s Stable by Trying to Humiliate Key Senate Ally Over Twitter," 25 Aug. 2017
The Kentucky Paradox Beshear led one of the nation’s most successful rollouts of Obamacare coverage in 2014 by uniting the new insurance marketplace and the state’s Medicaid expansion under the umbrella of a health care exchange called Kynect.

— lisa gillespie, Kaiser Health News, "Will GOP Pay A Price For Trying To Take Health Care Benefits From Voters?," 24 Aug. 2017
Our librarians are consistently learning about the latest technology and preparing books and events in order to ensure a successful school year.

— Cincinnati.com, "Column: Literacy at the Sharonville Library easy as ABC," 23 Aug. 2017
His own successful pop records and comic film roles led to him signing what, in 1959, was the most lucrative deal ever offered a performer: $10 million up front and 60 percent of the profits to star in 14 comedy features for Paramount.

— gary susman, vanityfair.com, "Jerry Lewis, Comedic Force of Nature, Dies at 91," 20 Aug. 2017

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

First Known Use of successful

1594

successful Synonyms

Synonyms

flourishing, going, palmy, prosperous, thriving, triumphant, in clover (also in the clover)

Antonyms

failed, unsuccessful

Related Words

coming, promising; booming, growing, roaring, robust; boffo, gangbusters (also gangbuster), runaway, socko

Near Antonyms

futureless, hopeless, inauspicious, no-good, unpromising; collapsing, failing, flopping, flunking, folding, washing-out; declining, slipping, slumping, waning; bankrupt, kaput (also kaputt), kerflooey; destroyed, ruined, wrecked

SUCCESSFUL Defined for English Language Learners

successful

play

adjective

Definition of successful for English Language Learners

: having the correct or desired result : ending in success
: having gotten or achieved wealth, respect, or fame

SUCCESSFUL Defined for Kids

successful

play

adjective suc·cess·ful \ sək-ˈses-fəl \

Definition of successful for Students

1 :resulting or ending well or in success

My attempt to swim across the harbor was successful.

2 :gaining or having gained success

a successful business

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successfully

\-fə-lē\ adverb

Learn More about successful

See words that rhyme with successful Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for successful Spanish Central: Translation of successful Nglish: Translation of successful for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of successful for Arabic speakers

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Examples of successful in a Sentence

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First Known Use of successful

successful Synonyms

Synonyms

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SUCCESSFUL Defined for English Language Learners

successful

Definition of successful for English Language Learners

SUCCESSFUL Defined for Kids

successful

Definition of successful for Students

successfully

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