1
as in relinquishing
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress
she reluctantly ceded her position as leader
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in transferring
to give over the legal possession or ownership of
Spain ceded Puerto Rico to the United States as part of the settlement of the Spanish-American War
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in abdicating
to give up (as a position of authority) formally
the President officially cedes his position on the January 20th immediately following the presidential election
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Recent Examples of ceding
The unpalatable alternative for Macron would be dissolving parliament again, ceding to pressure from the far right in particular for another unscheduled cycle of legislative elections.
—
Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 7 Oct. 2025
But even after Wayans gives in to tears over ceding the spotlight, the scene cuts to him looking intimidatingly, perhaps triumphantly, into the camera.
—Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025
By ceding possession in their own half and inviting the opposition into their own third, City are manufacturing space for Haaland to run into in a way that is not possible when dominating territory.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 24 Sep. 2025
Ukrainians overwhelmingly reject ceding territory.
—Oleksandra Matviichuk, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Sep. 2025
Peace cannot be achieved by ceding sovereignty.
—Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 16 Sep. 2025
Nwodim’s work here is graceful, ceding some big laughs to Edebiri (and her grotesque wound makeup) while locking in to her (slightly) less ridiculous character with hilarious conviction.
—Jesse Hassenger, Vulture, 12 Sep. 2025
Firms that fail to shine light on their dark data risk ceding the high ground in insights and inviting risk exposures lurking in unindexed archives.
—Daniel Fallmann, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
The document also prohibits any leader from ceding Ukrainian land, Farkas said during a recent interview with the Tribune.
—Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 7 Oct. 2025
But even after Wayans gives in to tears over ceding the spotlight, the scene cuts to him looking intimidatingly, perhaps triumphantly, into the camera.
—Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025
By ceding possession in their own half and inviting the opposition into their own third, City are manufacturing space for Haaland to run into in a way that is not possible when dominating territory.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 24 Sep. 2025
Ukrainians overwhelmingly reject ceding territory.
—Oleksandra Matviichuk, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Sep. 2025
Peace cannot be achieved by ceding sovereignty.
—Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 16 Sep. 2025
Nwodim’s work here is graceful, ceding some big laughs to Edebiri (and her grotesque wound makeup) while locking in to her (slightly) less ridiculous character with hilarious conviction.
—Jesse Hassenger, Vulture, 12 Sep. 2025
Firms that fail to shine light on their dark data risk ceding the high ground in insights and inviting risk exposures lurking in unindexed archives.
—Daniel Fallmann, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
The document also prohibits any leader from ceding Ukrainian land, Farkas said during a recent interview with the Tribune.
—Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ceding
Verb
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Liberation lies in relinquishing projection, in surrendering the desire for children to mirror our priorities and accomplishments.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Oct. 2025
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In the meantime, Kraft can leave more money behind for his extended family, approximately $740 million, without relinquishing control of the team.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Another new law, SB312, implements a requirement that dogs imported into the state for the purpose of selling or transferring ownership have a health certification completed by a veterinarian dated no more than ten days prior to arrival in California.—
Caelyn Pender,
Mercury News,
13 Oct. 2025
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Murphy passed for 5,436 yards and 85 TDs at Austin Regents during his freshman and sophomore years before transferring to Liberty Christian to begin the 2024 season.—
Mike Waters,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In June, the King spoke about the possibility of abdicating to make way for his daughter.—
Stephanie Petit,
PEOPLE,
30 Sep. 2025
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This isn't about abdicating responsibility.—
Julian Hayes II,
Forbes.com,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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This past weekend, the team gave up its biggest point total of the year, surrendering 37 points to the Dallas Cowboys in a Week 5 loss.—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
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Sometimes new parents just need someone to listen, says Nick Silverio, founder of the Florida nonprofit A Safe Haven for Newborns, which helps women who are considering surrendering their infants (and which opposes baby boxes).—
Alana Semuels,
Time,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Three years at the symphony Starting on his first day, July 27, 2020, Jones’ responsibilities included assigning parts to musicians, managing instruments, arranging production with stage crews and leading the percussion section’s performance.—
Matti Gellman,
Kansas City Star,
13 Oct. 2025
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In 1964, the National Police Board, together with the Swedish Police Association, launched a trial assigning women to special tasks, once again limiting their work to investigative, reconnaissance, and security patrol duties, without participation in regular uniformed service.—
Isadora Wandermurem,
Time,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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David Ryder | Bloomberg | Getty Images A Microsoft engineer is resigning after 13 years at the software giant, claiming the company continues to sell cloud services to the Israeli military and that executives won’t discuss the war in Gaza.—
Jordan Novet,
CNBC,
10 Oct. 2025
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That figure, already the highest on record, is expected to be eclipsed in 2025 as the focus on CEO accountability intensifies, with 25 CEOs resigning year to date after coming under activist pressure, with 20% of the departures occurring at S&P 500 companies.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
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This publication contains general information only and Deloitte is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services.—
Lara Abrash,
Fortune,
11 Oct. 2025
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Unfortunately for de Moura, Lemigova had already told not just her wife, but their daughters about all of the above, rendering her attempt at shaming her with that information totally powerless.—
James Factora,
Them.,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Rewriting society’s decision-making Unlike biased pundits who hem, haw and hedge their bets, Web3 prediction markets cut through noise, bequeathing a signal that feeds into pricing mechanisms themselves.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
17 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ceding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ceding. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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