triumphant
Americanadjective
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having achieved victory or success; victorious; successful.
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exulting over victory; rejoicing over success; exultant.
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Archaic. triumphal.
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Obsolete. splendid; magnificent.
adjective
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experiencing or displaying triumph
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exultant through triumph
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obsolete
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magnificent
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triumphal
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Usage
What does triumphant mean? Triumphant means experiencing, celebrating, or having achieved a triumph—an especially significant or noteworthy victory or success.Triumph is also commonly used as a verb meaning to win, succeed, or be victorious in an epic or spectacular way. Sometimes, it means to conquer. In this case, it’s often used with the word over, and triumphant is used in the same way. An army can be triumphant over enemy forces. In stories, good is triumphant over evil. A person might be said to be triumphant over cancer.Triumphant is especially used in situations in which victory or success has come after great difficulty, adversity, or sacrifice, or over an opponent considered difficult to defeat.Triumphant can describe a person who is or has been victorious, as in They returned to their hometown triumphant, entering to the cheers of the adoring crowd. Sometimes, triumphant describes the state of joy or celebration following a victory or success that is considered a triumph, as in A triumphant feeling filled her as she realized she had won the election. Triumphant can describe something considered a great achievement, as in Her latest novel is triumphant—a masterpiece in every way. The similar adjective triumphal means involving, relating to, or celebrating a triumph.Example: We will not rest until we are triumphant—when we finally victorious over the forces of evil.
Other Word Forms
- triumphantly adverb
- untriumphant adjective
Etymology
Origin of triumphant
First recorded in 1485–95; from Latin triumphant-, stem of triumphāns, present participle of triumphāre “to triumph”; triumph, -ant
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As supreme leader he never sets foot outside the country, a precedent set by Khomeini following his triumphant return to Tehran from France in 1979.
From Barron's
When the gallery doors swung open and the triumphant U.S.
Across five novels and three story collections, Lauren Groff has merged wide-screen history with intimate stories about women seeking and confronting power, including in her latest spirited — and triumphant — release “Brawler.”
From Los Angeles Times
The president invited them to his State of the Union address and added he would have to ask the triumphant women's team as well or risk being "impeached".
From Barron's
As the triumphant U.S. men’s hockey team made a cameo, Hernandez was looking at his smartphone.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
