Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1500-1600
Language: Latin
Origin: , past participle of succedere; SUCCEED

success

 noun
     
suc‧cess S1 W1 [uncountable and countable]
1 when you achieve what you want or intend [≠ failure]
be a big/huge/great etc success
The experiment was a big success.
without success
I tried to contact him, but without success.
Their efforts finally met with some success (=they were successful).
I didn't think my chances of success were very good.
She puts her success down to good luck (=says it is caused by good luck).
success in doing something
Did you have any success in persuading Alan to come?
2 when a lot of people like something, buy something, go to see something etc [≠ failure]
be a big/huge/great etc success
The film was a great success.
Her book has enjoyed a lot of success (=it has been very successful).
The play was a box-office success (=many people went to see it).
The show was an overnight success (=it was immediately successful).
3 when someone achieves a high position in their job, course, sport, in society etc [≠ failure]:
Success isn't everything, you know.
success in
He has already had a lot of success in his career.
be a success as a ... (=be successful in a particular job)
She wasn't much of a success as a lawyer.
She's determined to make a success of (=be successful in) her career.
4 when a business makes a lot of money [≠ failure]:
the success of his latest business venture
be a big/huge/great etc success
The firm wasn't a great success.
5

success story

someone or something that is successful:
The company has been a major success story.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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