as in to resign
to give up (as a position of authority) formally
the revolutionary government forced Nicholas II to abdicate the Russian throne
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Recent Examples of abdicate
That means 4 out of every 5 fellow citizens of our state abdicated their civic responsibility.
—
Otis Moss Iii, Chicago Tribune, 1 Mar. 2026
In 1936, King Edward VIII abdicated to his younger brother, King George VI.
—Geoffrey Greif, Baltimore Sun, 28 Feb. 2026
Although the Shah never officially abdicated, the Iranian population voted in a national referendum on April 1 to become an Islamic republic and to make Khomeini the country's supreme leader, effectively replacing the Shah's secular authoritarian monarchy with an anti-Western theocracy.
—Brit McCandless Farmer, CBS News, 28 Feb. 2026
Commentators have compared the pressures facing the House of Windsor to 1936, when King Edward VIII abdicated the thrown to marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson.
—ABC News, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for abdicate
Otis Moss Iii, Chicago Tribune, 1 Mar. 2026
In 1936, King Edward VIII abdicated to his younger brother, King George VI.
—Geoffrey Greif, Baltimore Sun, 28 Feb. 2026
Although the Shah never officially abdicated, the Iranian population voted in a national referendum on April 1 to become an Islamic republic and to make Khomeini the country's supreme leader, effectively replacing the Shah's secular authoritarian monarchy with an anti-Western theocracy.
—Brit McCandless Farmer, CBS News, 28 Feb. 2026
Commentators have compared the pressures facing the House of Windsor to 1936, when King Edward VIII abdicated the thrown to marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson.
—ABC News, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for abdicate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abdicate
Verb
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Sinagra said that Brooksby resigned as a consequence of the complaints, but disagreed with them.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
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Recently, Joe Kent, the former head of the National Counterterrorism Center, who resigned earlier this month in opposition to the war, went on Tucker Carlson’s show.—
Jay Caspian Kang,
New Yorker,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The United States has offered Iran a 15-point proposal for a ceasefire that includes it relinquishing control of the strait, but at the same time has ordered thousands more troops to the region — possibly in preparation for a military attempt to wrest the waterway from Iran.—
David Rising,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
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Bohm’s lawsuit demands at least $3 million in damages and that his parents relinquish control of the accounts.—
Steve Henson,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Should the chain of citizenship break somewhere along the line, however, where an ancestor renounced their citizenship, rights to Canadian citizenship end there.—
Vivian Song,
CNN Money,
30 Mar. 2026
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The German Jews were the founders of American Reform Judaism, which renounced dietary laws, bar mitzvahs, and Zionism.—
Adam Kirsch,
The Atlantic,
23 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Abdicate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abdicate. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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