accede

play

verb ac·cede \ak-ˈsēd, ik-\

Definition of accede

acceded

;

acceding

formal

intransitive verb
1a : to express approval or give consent : to agree to a request or demand —usually + to The government acceded to their demands.b : to become a party to something (such as an agreement) —usually + to accede to the terms of a contract
2 : to enter upon an office or position —usually + to He acceded to the throne [=became king] in 1838.
3 archaic : approach

See accede defined for English-language learners

See accede defined for kids

Examples of accede in a Sentence

His son acceded upon the king's death.
finally acceded to their pleas for more time to complete the project

Recent Examples of accede from the Web

Google has little choice but to accede to her demands.

— mark bergen, Bloomberg.com, "EU Crackdown Threatens to Return Google to `Ten Blue Link' Era", 27 June 2017
In acceding to the Democratic Party’s priorities, leftists risk allowing the Russia issue to become the ideological focus of the Resistance, while left theoreticians toil away, formulating systemic critiques that go unnoticed.

— michael tracey, New Republic, "Why Are Leftists Letting the Democratic Establishment Define the Trump Opposition?", 6 June 2017
Indeed, China, the next biggest economic power on Earth, would accede to the lead role in climate reform if the U.S. exits the Paris accord.

— eric roston, Bloomberg.com, "The U.S. Is The Loser as Trump Dumps the Climate Accord", 1 June 2017
In Afghanistan, the administration seems poised to accede to a troop surge, despite resistance from the State Department and some within the White House — including senior adviser Stephen Bannon — who fear the costly plan won’t work.

— missy ryan, Washington Post, "Military officers seed the ranks across Trump’s national security council", 28 May 2017
Among the newcomers pictured in the traditional summit souvenir was the president of tiny Montenegro, whose country only acceded to NATO membership in April.

— howard lafranchi, The Christian Science Monitor, "All in the family? NATO first-timers Trump and Macron a study in contrasts.", 25 May 2017
Mr. Tillerson has done little beyond proposing a lone deputy and acceding to a handful of ambassadorial nominations by the White House.

— gardiner harris, New York Times, "Tillerson in No Rush to Fill Nearly 200 State Department Posts", 27 Apr. 2017
Second of all, kudos to the institution brave enough to accede to that artist's wishes.

— lori waxman, chicagotribune.com, "Helio Oiticica's show is sensory overload, in all the best ways", 26 Apr. 2017
The G.O.P. bill would end the Medicaid expansion in 2020—sooner, possibly, if the White House accedes to demands from ultra-conservative groups.

— john cassidy, The New Yorker, "Twenty-Four Million Reasons the G.O.P. Health-Care Bill Is No Good", 14 Mar. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'accede'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

To accede usually means to yield, often under pressure and with some reluctance, to the needs or requests of others. Voters usually accede to a tax increase only when they're convinced it's the only real solution to a shortfall in government funding. A patient may accede to surgery only after the doctor assures him it's better than the alternatives. If you accede to your spouse's plea to watch the new reality show at 9:00, you may get to choose something better at 10:00.

Origin and Etymology of accede

Middle English acceden “to come near, become adapted to,” borrowed from Latin accēdere “to draw near, approach, side (with), be added (to),” from ad- ad- + cēdere “to go away, yield” — more at cede

NEW!

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of accede

assent, consent, accede, acquiesce, agree, subscribe mean to concur with what has been proposed. assent implies an act involving the understanding or judgment and applies to propositions or opinions. voters assented to the proposal consent involves the will or feelings and indicates compliance with what is requested or desired. consented to their daughter's going accede implies a yielding, often under pressure, of assent or consent. officials acceded to the prisoners' demands acquiesce implies tacit acceptance or forbearance of opposition. acquiesced to his boss's wishes agree sometimes implies previous difference of opinion or attempts at persuasion. finally agreed to come along subscribe implies not only consent or assent but hearty approval and active support. subscribes wholeheartedly to the idea

ACCEDE Defined for Kids

accede

play

verb ac·cede \ak-ˈsēd\

Definition of accede for Students

acceded

;

acceding

: to agree to They acceded to our demands.

Law Dictionary

accede

play

intransitive verb ac·cede \ak-ˈsēd, ik-\

Legal Definition of accede

acceded

acceding

1a : to become a party (as to an agreement) by associating oneself with others they were invited to accede to the covenant b : to express approval or give consent the banker asks for collateral. The debtor…accedes, and transfers some of his property — In re Patterson, 139 F. Supp. 830 (1956)
2 : to assume an office or position acceded to the governorship
3a : to become added by way of growth, increase, improvement, or labor the various improvements…had acceded to the realty and had become “fixtures” — Graham v. Henderson, 608 S.W.2d 150 (1980) b : to come into control or ownership of something a trustee in bankruptcy specifically accedes to all property of the debtor — Directory Int'l, Inc. v. Bates Mfg. Co., 91 B.R. 738 (1988)