Succor
What it means
Help and relief given to someone in serious distress.
Reach for it when using elevated or historical language for practical aid joined with comfort
The monastery offered food and succor to travelers caught in the storm.
Words to choose between 5
| everyday | |
|---|---|
| warm | |
| professional | |
| literary |
|
-
everyday
Fits when ordinary formal help is sufficient
Careful Assistance can be routine and lacks succor's severe stakes.
-
warm
Fits when emotional ease is more important than material help
Careful Comfort can accompany distress without changing the dangerous conditions.
-
professional
Fits when practical assistance is the neutral fact
Careful Aid may be technical or financial and carry no emotional comfort.
-
professional
Fits when immediate easing of hardship is the organized response
Careful Relief describes the result or program more than personal care.
-
literary
Fits when consolation during grief is the central gift
Careful Solace need not include the active rescue or support of succor.
Opposites 3
- abandonment
- neglect
- harm
Common phrases 3
-
give succor
Villagers crossed the pass to give succor to the stranded crew.
-
seek succor
Displaced families came to the school to seek succor and shelter.
-
bring succor
The first supply convoy will bring succor after five isolated days.
Usage notes
Keep in mind
Succor is uncommon in current everyday English and may sound biblical or archaic. Aid or relief is usually clearer.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Sapaa, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC0 Updated