succor

suc·cor

(sŭk′ər)

1. Assistance in time of distress; relief.

2. One that affords assistance or relief: "There is a higher beauty still in ... being a succor to the oppressed" (Charles Sumner).

tr.v. suc·cored, suc·cor·ing, suc·cors

To give assistance to in time of want, difficulty, or distress: succor the poor.

[Middle English sucur, back-formation from sucurs (taken as pl.), from Old French secors, from Medieval Latin succursus, from past participle of Latin succurrere, to run to the aid of : sub-, sub- + currere, to run; see kers- in Indo-European roots.]

suc′cor·a·ble adj.

suc′cor·er n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

suc•cor

(ˈsʌk ər)

n.

1. help; relief; aid.

2. a person or thing that gives help, relief, or aid.

v.t.

3. to help or relieve in difficulty, need, or distress.

Also, esp. Brit.,suc′cour.

[1250–1300; (v.) Middle English sucuren < Old French suc(c)urre, socorre < Latin succurrere to go beneath, run to help =suc- suc- + currere to run (see current)]

syn: See help.

usage: See -or¹.

succor

Past participle: succored
Gerund: succoring

Imperative
succor
succor

Present
I succor
you succor
he/she/it succors
we succor
you succor
they succor

Preterite
I succored
you succored
he/she/it succored
we succored
you succored
they succored

Present Continuous
I am succoring
you are succoring
he/she/it is succoring
we are succoring
you are succoring
they are succoring

Present Perfect
I have succored
you have succored
he/she/it has succored
we have succored
you have succored
they have succored

Past Continuous
I was succoring
you were succoring
he/she/it was succoring
we were succoring
you were succoring
they were succoring

Past Perfect
I had succored
you had succored
he/she/it had succored
we had succored
you had succored
they had succored

Future
I will succor
you will succor
he/she/it will succor
we will succor
you will succor
they will succor

Future Perfect
I will have succored
you will have succored
he/she/it will have succored
we will have succored
you will have succored
they will have succored

Future Continuous
I will be succoring
you will be succoring
he/she/it will be succoring
we will be succoring
you will be succoring
they will be succoring

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been succoring
you have been succoring
he/she/it has been succoring
we have been succoring
you have been succoring
they have been succoring

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been succoring
you will have been succoring
he/she/it will have been succoring
we will have been succoring
you will have been succoring
they will have been succoring

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been succoring
you had been succoring
he/she/it had been succoring
we had been succoring
you had been succoring
they had been succoring

Conditional
I would succor
you would succor
he/she/it would succor
we would succor
you would succor
they would succor

Past Conditional
I would have succored
you would have succored
he/she/it would have succored
we would have succored
you would have succored
they would have succored

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Noun	1.	succor - assistance in time of difficulty; "the contributions provided some relief for the victims" ministration, succour, relief assist, assistance, help, aid - the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose; "he gave me an assist with the housework"; "could not walk without assistance"; "rescue party went to their aid"; "offered his help in unloading" consolation, solace, comfort - the act of consoling; giving relief in affliction; "his presence was a consolation to her" mercy - alleviation of distress; showing great kindness toward the distressed; "distributing food and clothing to the flood victims was an act of mercy"
Verb	1.	succor - help in a difficult situation succour aid, assist, help - give help or assistance; be of service; "Everyone helped out during the earthquake"; "Can you help me carry this table?"; "She never helps around the house"

succor

noun

The act or an instance of helping:

abetment, aid, assist, assistance, hand, help, relief, support.

verb

To give support or assistance:

abet, aid, assist, boost, help (out), relieve.

Idioms: give a hand, give a leg up.

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

Succor and comfort you will find not in me, though I have come only to aid you if I can.

You must thank Him, and pray to Him for succor. In Him alone we find peace, consolation, salvation, and love," she said, and turning her eyes heavenwards, she began praying, as Alexey Alexandrovitch gathered from her silence.

View in context

But if neither time nor place be known, then the left wing will be impotent to succor the right, the right equally impotent to succor the left, the van unable to relieve the rear, or the rear to support the van.

View in context

The port would fain give succor; the port is pitiful; in the port is safety, comfort, hearthstone, supper, warm blankets, friends, all that's kind to our mortalities.

View in context

Gloomy Council.-Exploring Parties- Discouraging Reports- Disastrous Experiment.- Detachments in Quest of Succor.- Caches, How Made.

View in context

On the day when foreign succor follows in the train of a king to replace him on his throne, it is an avowal that he no longer possesses the help and love of his own subjects."

View in context

When the expedition returned, following their fruitless endeavor to succor D'Arnot, Captain Dufranne was anxious to steam away as quickly as possible, and all save Jane had acquiesced.

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Then he resumed his watch for the friendly prahu, or smaller sampan which he knew time would eventually bring from up or down the river to his rescue, for who of the surrounding natives would dare refuse succor to the powerful Rajah of Sakkan!

View in context

Quasimodo who did not hear, saw the naked swords, the torches, the irons of the pikes, all that cavalry, at the head of which he recognized Captain Phoebus; he beheld the confusion of the outcasts, the terror of some, the disturbance among the bravest of them, and from this unexpected succor he recovered so much strength, that he hurled from the church the first assailants who were already climbing into the gallery.

View in context

This letter told Buckingham that the city was at an extremity; but instead of adding, "If your succor does not arrive within fifteen days, we will surrender," it added, quite simply, "If your succor comes not within fifteen days, we shall all be dead with hunger when it comes."

View in context

Those were the knightly days of our profession, when we only bore arms to succor the distressed, and not to fill men's lamp-feeders.

View in context

If one was attacked, would the others fly to its succor, and spend their blood and money in its defense?