triumphant

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin triumphāns (“celebrating a triumph”), the present participle of triumphō (“to celebrate a triumph”),^[2][3][4][5] which comes from triumphus (“an achievement; a triumphal procession”), the source of triumph.^[3] The OED, the Shorter Oxford and the Oxford Dictionary of English allow that it may also be borrowed from Old French triumphant, later triomphant;^[2][6][7] the Middle English Dictionary gives both sources.^[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

Victorious; in the phrase chirche triumphaunt, the church in heaven: before 1425, in the Wycliffite Lantern.^[8] Etymonline dates the word to the early 15th century, the Shorter Oxford to late Middle English and Dictionary.com to 1485–95;^[3][6][9] the OED's first record, from 1494, has the now obsolete sense "splendid, magnificent".^[2]

Semantic evolution

The sense "splendid, glorious, noble" ran from 1494 to 1696 and is now obsolete;^[2] Merriam-Webster quotes Shakespeare's "a triumphant grave" for it.^[4] The sense "conquering, victorious" is recorded in English from before 1513,^[2] and "of or celebrating a triumph", like triumphal, from 1531, though the OED now calls it rare.^[2][4] The modern main sense, "exulting as if for a victory", first appears in Shakespeare's Richard III in 1597.^[2] Johnson (1755) listed "celebrating a victory" first and "rejoicing as for victory" second.^[10] From 1562 to 1812 triumphant was also a noun, a victor or conqueror.^[2]

Timeline

• before 1425 – victorious, in church triumphant.^[8]
• 1494 – splendid, magnificent (obsolete by 1696).^[2]
• before 1513 – conquering, victorious.^[2]
• 1531 – celebrating a triumph; triumphal.^[2]
• 1562 – noun, a victor (obsolete by 1812).^[2]
• 1597 – exultant, rejoicing as for a victory, in Shakespeare's Richard III.^[2]

Meanings

Adjective

1. Having won a victory or achieved success; victorious: The triumphant side paraded the cup through town.^[4][11][2]
2. Exultant or rejoicing because of success: a triumphant grin.^[4][11][2]
3. (archaic) Of or celebrating a triumph; triumphal.^[4][2]
4. (obsolete, 1494–1696) Magnificent or splendid.^[4][2][11]

Word family

• triumphantly
• untriumphant

Related words

• triumph
• triumphal
• trump

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
6. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c Kurath, Hans; Kuhn, Sherman M.; Lewis, Robert E., eds. (1952–2001), Middle English Dictionary, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press; online edition ed. Frances McSparran et al. (2000–2018)
9. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
10. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
11. ^ a b c Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins