surrender

verb

sur·ren·der | \ sə-ˈren-dər

surrendered; surrendering\ sə-ˈren-d(ə-)riŋ

Definition of surrender

(Entry 1 of 2)

transitive verb

1a : to yield to the power, control, or possession of another upon compulsion or demand surrendered the fort

b : to give up completely or agree to forgo especially in favor of another

2a : to give (oneself) up into the power of another especially as a prisoner

b : to give (oneself) over to something (such as an influence)

intransitive verb

: to give oneself up into the power of another : yield

surrender

noun

Definition of surrender (Entry 2 of 2)

1a : the action of yielding one's person or giving up the possession of something especially into the power of another

b : the relinquishment by a patentee of rights or claims under a patent

c : the delivery of a principal into lawful custody by bail

— called also surrender by bail

d : the voluntary cancellation of the legal liability of an insurance company by the insured and beneficiary for a consideration

e : the delivery of a fugitive from justice by one government to another

2 : an instance of surrendering

Synonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about surrender

Keep scrolling for more

Choose the Right Synonym for surrender

Verb

relinquish, yield, resign, surrender, abandon, waive mean to give up completely. relinquish usually does not imply strong feeling but may suggest some regret, reluctance, or weakness. relinquished her crown yield implies concession or compliance or submission to force. the troops yielded ground grudgingly resign emphasizes voluntary relinquishment or sacrifice without struggle. resigned her position surrender implies a giving up after a struggle to retain or resist. surrendered their claims abandon stresses finality and completeness in giving up. abandoned all hope waive implies conceding or forgoing with little or no compulsion. waived the right to a trial by jury

Examples of surrender in a Sentence

Verb

The enemy finally surrendered after three days of fighting. The gunman surrendered and was taken into custody. The troops were forced to surrender the fort. They were required to surrender their passports. the surrendering of land to the government He refused to surrender to despair. He refused to surrender himself to despair.

Noun

Their surrender was formalized in a treaty. They demanded an unconditional surrender.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Tibbetts also would have been required to surrender his passport and have no contact with the victim, her family or witnesses. — Monivette Cordeiro, orlandosentinel.com, "Apopka man convicted of sexually battering stepdaughter denied release during appeal," 11 June 2019 The Courant reports Fotis Dulos must wear a GPS monitoring bracelet, must surrender his passport and is barred from leaving the state as conditions of his bail. — Erin Donaghue, CBS News, "Husband's DNA found mixed with missing Connecticut mom's blood on faucet, prosecutor says," 11 June 2019 Released on a $500,000 bond Monday, Troconis was ordered to wear a GPS monitoring bracelet and surrender her passport. — Kc Baker, PEOPLE.com, "Police Do Late-Night Search of Missing Conn. Mom of 5's Home as Authorities Receive 225 Tips," 6 June 2019 He is also required to surrender his passport and has a no-contact order. — Taylor Romine, CNN, "Columbus doctor indicted for 25 counts of murder related to alleged overprescribing of pain medication," 5 June 2019 Once released, Peterson will be required to wear a GPS monitor and surrender his passport, and will be prohibited from possessing a firearm, the prosecutor said. — Fox News, "Florida resource officer who didn't enter school during shooting massacre is arrested," 5 June 2019 Hannibal’s father, commander and statesman Hamilcar Barca, chafed at the peace treaty, which forced Carthage to surrender the valuable colony of Sicily and pay remunerations to Rome. — National Geographic, "Who was Hannibal?," 4 Mar. 2019 Later in the day, Judge Sullivan asked Mr. Flynn to surrender his passport and remain in the Washington area so the whole matter can be reopened anytime. — Michael Ledeen, WSJ, "The Real Story of the Flynn Hearing," 19 Dec. 2018 The team also drove to the German front-line headquarters and helped convince German Major General Botho Henning Elster to surrender and hand over 19,500 troops to U.S. Major General Robert C. Macon. — Maggie Maloney, Town & Country, "Prince Philip’s Cousin Was a Paratrooper Who Helped Liberate France From the Nazis," 20 Aug. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Officers exchanged gunfire with Dimitirios before a 25-minute negotiation ended in his surrender. — Eliott C. Mclaughlin, CNN, "Texas school shooting: Accused shooter's dad believes bullying behind rampage, paper says," 22 May 2018 In most such cases, opposition groups on the verge of surrender gave up their fight and were evacuated to remaining areas outside government control, namely Idlib. — Fox News, "Turkey warns against Syrian govt offensive on Idlib," 24 Aug. 2018 Margol said, although the official surrender happened later that afternoon when their unit was already close to Munich. — Fleming Smith, ajc, "World War II veteran, 94, shares his story in Holocaust museum exhibit," 28 June 2018 How long can this prank war go on before one of these fellas surrenders? — Allie Gemmill, Teen Vogue, "Nick Jonas and John Stamos Stepped Up Their Prank War to Include Personalized Blankets," 12 Mar. 2019 That could include a type of warning letter, civil penalties, a voluntary surrender of license or continued education, Gandhi said. — Melissa Daniels, The Seattle Times, "Pharmacist denies woman miscarriage drug on moral grounds," 26 June 2018 On Wednesday, several hundred of the last civilians trapped by Islamic State left, suggesting the extremist group was near a surrender. — Dion Nissenbaum, WSJ, "Trump Shifts Course to Keep 200 Troops in Syria," 22 Feb. 2019 The last balloon left Paris on January 28, 1871, the day of the armistice that led to France's surrender to German forces. — Jay Bennett, Popular Mechanics, "The First Anti-Aircraft Gun Was a Big Cannon Designed to Pop Balloons," 13 June 2016 The summits Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev held in the 1980s looked in retrospect like surrender talks between an ascendant America and a broken rival. — The Economist, "The Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki," 5 July 2018

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

History and Etymology for surrender

Verb

Middle English surrendren, from surrendre, noun

Noun

Middle English surrendre, from Anglo-French, from surrendre, susrendre to relinquish, from sur- & sus-, suz under + rendre to give back — more at render, sous

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about surrender

Dictionary Entries near surrender

Statistics for surrender

Last Updated

17 Jun 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for surrender

The first known use of surrender was in the 15th century

See more words from the same century

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for surrender

surrender

verb

English Language Learners Definition of surrender

(Entry 1 of 2)

: to agree to stop fighting, hiding, resisting, etc., because you know that you will not win or succeed

: to give the control or use of (something) to someone else

: to allow something (such as a habit or desire) to influence or control you

surrender

noun

English Language Learners Definition of surrender (Entry 2 of 2)

: an agreement to stop fighting, hiding, resisting, etc., because you know that you will not win or succeed : an act of surrendering

: the act of giving the control or use of something to someone else

: the act of allowing yourself to be influenced or controlled by someone or something

See the full definition for surrender in the English Language Learners Dictionary

surrender

verb

sur·ren·der | \ sə-ˈren-dər

surrendered; surrendering

Kids Definition of surrender

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : to give up after a struggle The soldiers surrendered. We'll never surrender the fort.

2 : to let go of : relinquish We surrendered our place in line.

surrender

noun

Kids Definition of surrender (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : the act of giving up after a struggle

2 : the act of giving something over to the possession or control of someone else

surrender

transitive verb

sur·ren·der

Legal Definition of surrender

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : to yield to the control or possession of another surrender the leased premises surrender collateral to a creditor

b : to give up completely or agree to forgo

c : to cancel (one's insurance policy) voluntarily

2 : to give over to the custody of the law surrender a defendant

intransitive verb

: to give oneself up

surrender

noun

Legal Definition of surrender (Entry 2 of 2)

: an act or instance of surrendering discharge an obligor by surrender of a promissory note especially : the yielding of an estate by a tenant to the landlord so that the leasehold interest is extinguished by mutual agreement