1
a
: degree or measure of succeeding
b
: favorable or desired outcome
also
: the attainment of wealth, favor, or eminence
2
: one that succeeds
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.
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
Such ambitious pricing might be taken as a benchmark of single malt’s astonishing success.
—Angus MacKinnon, CNN, 13 Apr. 2024
Local events, tourism still saw success despite fewer visitors than planned
Despite getting fewer visitors than planned, several cities in the state still saw great success.
—Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 13 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for success 
Angus MacKinnon, CNN, 13 Apr. 2024
Local events, tourism still saw success despite fewer visitors than planned
Despite getting fewer visitors than planned, several cities in the state still saw great success.
—Katie Wiseman, The Indianapolis Star, 13 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for success
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'success.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Phrases Containing success
Dictionary Entries Near success
Cite this Entry
“Success.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/success. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
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Kids Definition
success
noun
suc·cess
sək-ˈses 
1
a
: degree or measure of succeeding
b
: satisfactory completion of something
c
: the gaining of wealth, respect, or fame
2
: a person or thing that succeeds
More from Merriam-Webster on success
Nglish: Translation of success for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of success for Arabic Speakers
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