abdication

noun

ab·​di·​ca·​tion ˌab-di-ˈkā-shən 

plural abdications

: an act of abdicating: such as

a

: an act of giving up sovereign power or high office

The desire of King Edward VIII to marry divorced U.S. socialite Wallis Simpson led to the king's abdication in 1936, an event that also brought Harry, his father Prince Charles and his brother, Prince William, into the line of succession.

—Martha Ross

From the advent of Alexander the Great, in 332 B.C., to the abdication of King Farouk, in 1952, the country was ruled without interruption by non-Egyptians.

—Milton Viorst

b

: an act of abandoning or discarding a right, responsibility, etc.

an abdication of authority

The militants took the liberties of Europe as a sign of moral and political abdication.

—Fouad Ajami

When the majority throws up its hands because the problems are too tough, that's simply an abdication of responsibility.

—Michael S. Serrill

Examples of abdication in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While some monarchs reign until death, voluntary abdication has become a pattern in Luxembourg. —Janine Henni, Peoplemag, 9 July 2024

Before kick-off, Prince William was spotted chatting with King Frederik of Denmark, who acceded to the throne earlier this year following Queen Margrethe's abdication, and posed for a photo with Frederik's 13-year-old daughter, Princess Josephine. —Stephanie Petit, Peoplemag, 1 July 2024

How is delegating tasks to his own agencies some kind of weak-willed abdication? —New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 18 June 2024

Kindleberger also warned that an abdication of or conflict over leadership would lead to stalemate and economic hardship. —Robert B. Zoellick, Foreign Affairs, 22 Feb. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

1571, in the meaning defined above