triumph

See also: Triumph

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈtɹaɪ.ʌmf/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈtɹaɪ.əmf/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Etymology 1

From Middle English [Term?], borrowed from Old French triumphe, from Latin triumphus (“triumphal procession”), ultimately from Ancient Greek θρίαμβος (thríambos, “thriambus”). Doublet of thriambus and trump.

Noun

triumph (countable and uncountable, plural triumphs)

1. A conclusive success following an effort, conflict, or confrontation of obstacles; victory; conquest.

   the triumph of knowledge

   After being defeated in three previous finals, Roger finally tasted triumph at this year's competition.

2. A magnificent and imposing ceremonial performed in honor of a victor.
3. (obsolete) Any triumphal procession; a pompous exhibition; a stately show or pageant.
   • c. 1607–1608, William Shakeſpeare, The Late, And much admired Play, Called Pericles, Prince of Tyre. […], London: Imprinted at London for Henry Goſſon,  […], published 1609, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iii]:

     We are ready, & our daughter heere, / In honour of whoſe Birth, theſe Triumphs are, / Sits heere like Beauties child,

4. A state of joy or exultation at success.
   • 1667, John Milton, “Book VII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     Great triumph and rejoicing was in heaven.

   • 1697, Virgil, “Aeneis”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:

     Hercules from Spain / Arrived in triumph, from Geryon slain.

5. (obsolete) A trump card.
   • c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:

     Eros has
     Packt Cards with Cæsars, and false plaid my Glory
     Unto an Enemies triumph

6. A card game, also called trump.
7. (historical, Ancient Rome) a ceremony held to publicly celebrate and sanctify the military achievement of an army commander.
8. A work of art, cuisine, etc. of very high quality.

   Scorsese's latest film is a triumph.

   This wedding cake is a triumph.

9. A card trick in which the cards are shuffled with half face-up and half face-down, then laid out so that only the observer's chosen card is facing upward.

Translations

conclusive success; victory; conquest

• Albanian: please add this translation if you can
• Armenian: տրիումֆ (hy) (triumf), հաղթանակ (hy) (haġtʻanak)
• Azerbaijani: zəfər (az), təntənə
• Bulgarian: победа (bg) f (pobeda), триумф (bg) m (triumf)
• Catalan: triomf (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 凱旋 / 凯旋 (zh) (kǎixuán), 勝利 / 胜利 (zh) (shènglì)

• Danish: triumf c
• Dutch: triomf (nl)
• Esperanto: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: voitto (fi), riemuvoitto (fi)
• French: triomphe (fr) m
• Galician: triunfo m, trunfo m
• Georgian: ტრიუმფი (ṭriumpi)
• German: Triumph (de) m
• Greek: θρίαμβος (el) m (thríamvos)
• Hebrew: נִצָּחוֹן (he) (nitsakhón)
• Higaonon: nakadaug
• Hungarian: diadal (hu)
• Indonesian: kemenangan (id)
• Irish: caithréim f
• Italian: trionfo (it) m
• Japanese: 勝利 (ja) (しょうり, shōri), 偉業 (ja) (いぎょう, igyō)
• Korean: 승리(勝利) (ko) (seungni)
• Latin: triumphus m
• Marathi: विजय (vijay)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: triumf m

  Nynorsk: triumf m

• Occitan: triomf (oc) m
• Old English: siġe m
• Persian: پیروزی (fa) (piruzi)
• Polish: triumf (pl) m, tryumf m
• Portuguese: triunfo (pt) m
• Romanian: triumf (ro) n
• Russian: триу́мф (ru) m (triúmf), побе́да (ru) f (pobéda)
• Spanish: triunfo (es) m, batatazo m (unexpected, surprising)
• Swedish: triumf (sv) c
• Tagalog: tagumpay (tl)
• Thai: ชัย (th) (chai)
• Turkish: zafer (tr)
• Vietnamese: thắng lợi (vi)
• Yiddish: טריומף m (tryumf)

ceremony performed in honour of a victory

• Bulgarian: триумф (bg) m (triumf)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 凱旋 / 凯旋 (zh) (kǎixuán)

• Danish: sejrsceremoni c
• Finnish: voitonjuhla, triumfi (fi)
• Greek:

  Ancient Greek: θρίαμβος m (thríambos)

• Hungarian: diadalmenet (hu)
• Japanese: 凱旋 (ja) (gaisen)
• Portuguese: triunfo (pt) m
• Russian: триу́мф (ru) m (triúmf)

any triumphal procession; pompous exhibition etc

• Bulgarian: триумфално шествие n (triumfalno šestvie)
• Danish: triumftog n
• Finnish: triumfi (fi), riemusaatto
• Volapük: levikodagoläd

a state of joy or exultation at success

• Azerbaijani: təntənə
• Bulgarian: ликуване (bg) n (likuvane), тържествуване (bg) n (tǎržestvuvane)
• Danish: triumf c
• Finnish: voitonriemu
• French: triomphe (fr) m
• German: Triumph (de) m
• Hungarian: örömujjongás (hu)
• Italian: trionfo (it) m
• Japanese: 意気揚々 (ja) (iki yōyō), 勝ち誇り (はちほこり, kachihokori)
• Romanian: triumf (ro) n, victorie (ro) f
• Russian: триу́мф (ru) m (triúmf), торжество́ (ru) n (toržestvó), ликова́ние (ru) n (likovánije)

trump card — see trump

card game

• Finnish: valtti (fi)

ceremony to celebrate someone’s military achievement

• Finnish: voitonjuhla
• Portuguese: triunfo (pt) m

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Arabic: ^{(please verify)} نَصْر (ar) m (naṣr)
• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} triomf (nl)
• French: ^{(please verify)} triomphe (fr) m
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} trionfo (it) m
• Korean: ^{(please verify)} 승리 (ko) (seungni)
• Macedonian: ^{(please verify)} триумф m (triumf)
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} triumf (sv)
• Tamil: ^{(please verify)} வென்றி (ta) (veṉṟi)

Etymology 2

From Latin triumphō.

Verb

triumph (third-person singular simple present triumphs, present participle triumphing, simple past and past participle triumphed)

1. To celebrate victory with pomp; to rejoice over success; to exult in an advantage gained; to exhibit exultation.
   • 1593, anonymous author, The Life and Death of Iacke Straw […], Act I:

     England is growne to ſuch a paſſe of late,
     That rich men triumph to ſee the poore beg at their gate.

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Psalms 94:3:

     How long shall the wicked triumph?

   • c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iii]:

     Sorrow on thee, and all the packe of you
     That triumph thus vpon my miſery:

2. To prevail over rivals, challenges, or difficulties.
   • c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act I, scene ii:

     Forſake thy king and do but ioyne with me
     And we will triumph ouer al the world.

3. To succeed, win, or attain ascendancy.
   • 1856 February, [Thomas Babington] Macaulay, “Oliver Goldsmith”, in T[homas] F[lower] E[llis], editor, The Miscellaneous Writings and Speeches of Lord Macaulay, new edition, London: Longman, Green, Reader, & Dyer, published 1871, →OCLC:

     On this occasion, however, genius triumphed.

   • 2016 March 3, David Thomson, The Guardian‎^[1]:

     No one reckoned in advance that he had anything but a very testing job as host. He had to be tough, brave, witty, engaging – and decent. He triumphed on every count, thanks to sheer ability.

4. To be prosperous; to flourish.
   • 1774, John Trumbull, An Elegy on the Times:

     where commerce triumphed on the favouring gales

5. To play a trump in a card game.
   • 1625, Ben Jonson, The Fortunate Isles and Their Union:

     Of the kings and the queens that triumph in the cards

Translations

to prevail over rivals

• Azerbaijani: qələbə çalmaq, zəfər çalmaq, qalib gəlmək (az), üstün gəlmək
• Bulgarian: побеждавам (bg) (pobeždavam)
• Danish: triumfere, sejre
• Dutch: triomferen (nl)
• Finnish: voittaa (fi), menestyä (fi)
• French: triompher (fr)
• Galician: triunfar
• German: triumphieren (de)
• Greek: θριαμβεύω (el) (thriamvévo)
• Hebrew: ניצח (he) (nitséakh)
• Hungarian: diadalmoskodik, győzedelmeskedik (hu)
• Italian: trionfare (it)
• Japanese: 大勝利を成す (daishōri o nasu), 偉業を成す (igyō o nasu)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: triumfere

• Phoenician: 𐤍𐤑𐤓 (nṣr /⁠naṡar⁠/)
• Portuguese: triunfar
• Quechua: haylliy
• Romanian: triumfa (ro), învinge (ro)
• Spanish: triunfar (es)
• Swedish: triumfera (sv)

to succeed

• Azerbaijani: qələbə çalmaq, zəfər çalmaq
• Bulgarian: побеждавам (bg) (pobeždavam)
• Danish: triumfere, sejre
• Finnish: voittaa (fi), menestyä (fi)
• French: triompher (fr)
• Galician: triunfar
• German: triumphieren (de)
• Hebrew: הצליח (he) (hitslíakh)
• Italian: trionfare (it)
• Japanese: 大勝利を成す (daishōri o nasu), 偉業を成す (igyō o nasu)
• Maori: eke tangaroa
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: triumfere

• Portuguese: triunfar

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} zegevieren (nl)

Related terms

• triumphal
• triumphant