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Webster 1913 Edition

Succeed

Suc-ceed′

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Succeeded
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Succeeding
.]
[L.
succedere
,
successum
;
sub
under +
cedere
to go, to go along, approach, follow, succeed: cf. F.
succéder
. See
Cede
, and cf.
Success
.]
1.
To follow in order; to come next after; hence, to take the place of;
as, the king’s eldest son
succeeds
his father on the throne; autumn
succeeds
summer
.
As he saw him nigh
succeed
.
Spenser.
2.
To fall heir to; to inherit.
[Obs. & R.]
Shak.
3.
To come after; to be subsequent or consequent to; to follow; to pursue.
Destructive effects . . .
succeeded
the curse.
Sir T. Browne.
4.
To support; to prosper; to promote.
[R.]
Succeed
my wish and second my design.
Dryden.

Suc-ceed′

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To come in the place of another person, thing, or event; to come next in the usual, natural, or prescribed course of things; to follow; hence, to come next in the possession of anything; – often with to.
If the father left only daughters, they equally
succeeded
to him in copartnership.
Sir M. Hale.
Enjoy till I return
Short pleasures; for long woes are to
succeed
!
Milton.
2.
Specifically:
To ascend the throne after the removal the death of the occupant.
No woman shall
succeed
in Salique land.
Shakespeare
3.
To descend, as an estate or an heirloom, in the same family; to devolve.
Shak.
4.
To obtain the object desired; to accomplish what is attempted or intended; to have a prosperous issue or termination; to be successful;
as, he
succeeded
in his plans; his plans
succeeded
.
It is almost impossible for poets to
succeed
without ambition.
Dryden.
Spenser endeavored it in Shepherd's Kalendar; but neither will it
succeed
in English.
Dryden.
5.
To go under cover.
[A latinism. Obs.]
Will you to the cooler cave
succeed
!
Dryden.
Syn. – To follow; pursue. See
Follow
.

Definition 2024

succeed

succeed

English

Alternative forms

Verb

succeed ‎(third-person singular simple present succeeds, present participle succeeding, simple past and past participle succeeded)

  1. To follow in order; to come next after; hence, to take the place of.
    The king's eldest son succeeds his father on the throne.
    Autumn succeeds summer.
  2. To obtain the object desired; to accomplish what is attempted or intended; to have a prosperous issue or termination; to be successful.
  3. (obsolete, rare) To fall heir to; to inherit.
    So, if the issue of the elder son succeed before the younger, I am king.
  4. To come after; to be subsequent or consequent to; to follow; to pursue.
    • Sir Thomas Browne
      Destructive effects […] succeeded the curse.
    • 1919, W. Somerset Maugham, The Moon and Sixpence, chapter 49
      Her arms were like legs of mutton, her breasts like giant cabbages; her face, broad and fleshy, gave you an impression of almost indecent nakedness, and vast chin succeeded to vast chin.
  5. To support; to prosper; to promote.
    • Dryden
      Succeed my wish and second my design.
  6. To come in the place of another person, thing, or event; to come next in the usual, natural, or prescribed course of things; to follow; hence, to come next in the possession of anything; -- often with to.
    1. To ascend the throne after the removal the death of the occupant.
  7. To descend, as an estate or an heirloom, in the same family; to devolve.
  8. To go under cover.

Antonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Etymology

From Old French succeder, from Latin succedere ‎(“to go under, go from under, come under, approach, follow, take the place of, receive by succession, prosper, be successful”)

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /səkˈsiːd/
  • Rhymes: -iːd
  • Hyphenation: suc‧ceed

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