The verbs win and prevail both deal with claiming victory, but in different arenas. Win is more likely to be found in a literal arena, as in the case of a sporting event where one team will overcome an adversary to win a game (go, team!). Prevail is commonly found in discussions of struggles or battles where the winner is not a team, but an idea such as morality, justice, or truth. It’s also used in the common expression cooler heads prevail, which is used (usually in a hopeful or relieved manner) to mean that more calm, rational voices will or did win out over fiery, irrational ones.

The adjective rowdy describes things that are disorderly and noisy or disruptive, often groups of people gathered together for an event (a rowdy crowd at a game) or the gathering itself (a rowdy celebration). It can suggest roughness or boisterous fun, depending on the context. The adjective rambunctious conveys a similar active noisiness, but it skews younger, more commonly describing children or even young pets that are wildly boisterous and, thus, difficult to handle. But whatever difficulty this adjective suggests is usually couched in affection for the unrestrained energy of youth.

The outlook is promising for the verbs thrive and flourish, both of which broadly mean to do well. Thrive emphasizes growth; in the context of business or economics, this takes the form of prosperity or financial gain. Flourish comes ultimately from the Latin word for flower, flōs, and the notion of flowering or blossoming is helpful in understanding how it is used. This verb emphasizes evidence of full development or influence (the way blossoms are an indication of fruit to come). Something that is flourishing, then, is not only growing and thriving, but offering abundant indications of its healthy or successful state.