step down (from)

verb

Definition of step down (from)next
1
as in to leave
to give up (a job or office) with the advent of his 90th birthday, he could no longer resist calls for him to step down from chairmanship of the board

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to resign
to give up (as a position of authority) formally even in the face of a palace revolt, Queen Elizabeth I refused to step down from the throne

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for step down (from)
  1. leave
  2. resign
  3. relinquish
  4. abdicate
  5. quit
Verb
  • The sighting left the researchers with more questions than answers… but that’s the beauty of studying the ocean.
    — Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes.com, 1 Apr. 2025
  • For that reason, Santoro left Rivolta Femminile and in 1976 founded the Cooperativa Beato Angelico, the first women’s art space in Rome, together with ten other Italian women.
    — Paola Ugolini, Artforum, 1 Apr. 2025
Definition of leave
Verb
  • One now former Skadden attorney, Rachel Cohen, resigned over her firm’s approach.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 29 Mar. 2025
  • According to a recent survey from the Israel Democracy Institute, some seventy per cent of Israelis believe that Netanyahu should take responsibility for October 7th and resign.
    — Bernard Avishai, New Yorker, 28 Mar. 2025
Definition of resign
Verb
  • Hamas does not tolerate dissent and will not relinquish power easily.
    — Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Apr. 2025
  • Israel says the war won’t end until Hamas relinquishes power and releases the remaining 59 hostages taken on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked southern Israel from Gaza.
    — Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 29 Mar. 2025
Definition of relinquish
Verb
  • My previous tendency to abdicate responsibility for certain aspects of the business was holding us back.
    — Paul David, Forbes.com, 26 Mar. 2025
  • Trump also seems to have abdicated most responsibility of bureaucracy to others by allowing Musk’s team unprecedented access to sensitive government programs and documents that include people’s personal information.
    — Shannon Bow O'Brien, The Conversation, 25 Mar. 2025
Definition of abdicate
Verb
  • If approved, the bill would get rid of the restriction on striking workers from receiving SNAP and also protect public sector workers who are fired from being considered to have voluntarily quit.
    — Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
  • The basketball world may have given up on the Suns, one of the NBA’s most disappointing teams, months ago, but aside from a blowout loss to the defending-champion Boston Celtics on Wednesday, Phoenix isn’t quitting on itself, in part because this has become Booker’s team to run.
    — Fred Katz, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
Definition of quit
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

step-down
step down (from)
step-downs
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Cite this Entry

“Step down (from).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/step%20down%20%28from%29. Accessed 4 Apr. 2025.

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