Standard Lemma guide

survival

noun · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /səˈvaɪ.vəl/
  • UK: /səˈvʌɪ.vəl/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: /sɚˈvaɪ.vəl/
  • rhymes with -aɪvəl
  • CMU ARPABET: S ER0 V AY1 V AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The fact or act of surviving; continued existence or life.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • His survival in the open ocean was a miracle; he had fully expected to die.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Of, relating to or aiding survival.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • persecution survival plan
  • His survival kit had all the things he needed in the wilderness.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

The avoidance of relegation or demotion to a lower league or division.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: hobbies, lifestyle, sports

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A custom or belief that persists in folklore from earlier times, when the rationale behind it is forgotten.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: anthropology, human-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

something that survives

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: continuance, continuation

Narrower terms: custom, usage, usance, hangover, holdover

6

noun

Meaning 6

a natural process resulting in the evolution of organisms best adapted to the environment

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: survival of the fittest, natural selection, selection

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: natural process, natural action, action, activity

7

noun

Meaning 7

a state of surviving; remaining alive

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: endurance

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: animation, life, living, aliveness

Narrower terms: subsistence

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *úp Proto-Indo-European *-er Proto-Indo-European *upér Proto-Italic *super Latin super Latin super- Proto-Indo-European *gweyh3- Proto-Indo-European *-wós Proto-Indo-European *gwih3wós Proto-Indo-European *gwíh3weti Proto-Italic *gwīwō Latin vīvō Latin supervīvereder. English survive English -al English survival From survive + -al.

Across languages

Translations

65 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: mbijetesë — continued existence or life
  • Belarusian: выжыва́нне (vyžyvánnje) — continued existence or life
  • Belarusian: выжыва́ньне (vyžyvánʹnje) — continued existence or life
  • Bulgarian: преживя́ване (preživjávane) — continued existence or life
  • Bulgarian: оцеляване (oceljavane) — continued existence or life
  • Catalan: supervivència — continued existence or life
  • Chinese Mandarin: 生存 (shēngcún) — continued existence or life
  • Czech: přežití — continued existence or life
  • Danish: overlevelse — continued existence or life
  • Dutch: overleven — continued existence or life
  • Dutch: overleving — continued existence or life
  • Esperanto: transvivo — continued existence or life
  • Finnish: eloonjääminen — continued existence or life
  • Finnish: selviytyminen — continued existence or life
  • French: survie — continued existence or life
  • Friulian: sorevivence — continued existence or life
  • Galician: supervivencia — continued existence or life
  • German: Überleben — continued existence or life
  • Greek: επιβίωση (epivíosi) — continued existence or life
  • Hungarian: túlélés — continued existence or life
  • Indonesian: kesintasan — continued existence or life
  • Indonesian: tahan hidup — continued existence or life
  • Irish: maireachtáil — continued existence or life
  • Italian: sopravvivenza — continued existence or life
  • Japanese: 生存 (seizon) — continued existence or life
  • Japanese: サバイバル (sabaibaru) — continued existence or life
  • Khmer: ការរស់រានមានជីវិត (kaa rŭəh riən miən ciivɨt) — continued existence or life
  • Korean: 생존 (saengjon) — continued existence or life
  • Latvian: izdzīvošana — continued existence or life
  • Ligurian: sopravivénsa — continued existence or life
  • Lithuanian: išlikimas — continued existence or life
  • Macedonian: опстанок (opstanok) — continued existence or life
  • Malay: ikhtiar hidup — continued existence or life
  • Norwegian: overlevelse — continued existence or life
  • Occitan: subrevida — continued existence or life
  • Polish: przetrwanie — continued existence or life
  • Polish: przeżycie — continued existence or life
  • Portuguese: sobrevivência — continued existence or life
  • Romanian: supraviețuire — continued existence or life
  • Russian: выжива́ние (vyživánije) — continued existence or life
  • Slovak: prežitie — continued existence or life
  • Spanish: supervivencia — continued existence or life
  • Spanish: pervivencia — continued existence or life
  • Spanish: sobrevivencia — continued existence or life
  • Swahili: kuishi — continued existence or life
  • Swahili: kusalimika — continued existence or life
  • Swedish: överlevnad — continued existence or life
  • Tagalog: lighay — continued existence or life
  • Turkish: hayatta kalma — continued existence or life
  • Ukrainian: вижива́ння (vyžyvánnja) — continued existence or life
  • Walloon: sorvicaedje — continued existence or life
  • Yiddish: קיום (kiyem) — continued existence or life
  • Yiddish: איבערלעבונג (iberlebung) — continued existence or life
  • Belarusian: перажы́так (pjeražýtak) — persistent custom or belief
  • Bulgarian: отживе́лица (otživélica) — persistent custom or belief
  • German: Relikt — persistent custom or belief
  • German: Überbleibsel — persistent custom or belief
  • German: Überlebsel — persistent custom or belief
  • German: Überrest — persistent custom or belief
  • Japanese: 残存 (zanzon) — persistent custom or belief
  • Japanese: 遺物 (ibutsu) — persistent custom or belief
  • Malay: peninggalan — persistent custom or belief
  • Russian: пережи́ток (perežítok) — persistent custom or belief
  • Ukrainian: пере́житок (peréžytok) — persistent custom or belief
  • Ukrainian: пережи́ток (perežýtok) — persistent custom or belief
Real reading context

survival in complete knowledge articles