His grandfather survived his grandmother by ten years.

survived 是动词 survive 的过去式，survive 由前缀 sur-（表示"超过"）和词根 vive（来自拉丁语 vivere，意为"生活"）组成，字面意思是"活得比...更久"。在句中表示"比某人活得更长"的意思。