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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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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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
As Big Tech companies face legal backlash for addictive features and potential mental health risk, parents are ceding responsibility for what happens inside the home.
—
Maggie Anders, Oc Register, 7 Apr. 2026
But others can ask to maintain more creative control if interested, rather than the traditional practice of ceding it to the industry.
—Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 29 Mar. 2026
Boulee gave the two parties a deadline to agree on a mediator and come to the table, but with the deadline approaching, officials say neither side was ceding any ground.
—Dan Raby, CBS News, 16 Mar. 2026
Southwest Airlines is cutting service at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, effectively ceding ground to the two giants jockeying for dominance at the hub.
—Dallas Morning News, 13 Mar. 2026
Officials at both districts point to the fact that their current offers to their unions are in line with the recommendations of an independent fact finder and that ceding to union demands would mean major programming cuts for students.
—Jennah Pendleton, Sacbee.com, 12 Mar. 2026
Portuguese decolonization and Indonesian interference Since 1520 the Portuguese had maintained a presence on the island of Timor, later obtaining sovereignty over its eastern half in the 19th century and ceding the western half to the Netherlands.
—Agathe Demarolle, Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Mar. 2026
But Scrubs builds the new cast members into each episode bit by bit, ceding a little more narrative ground to them with each episode rather than immediately overwhelming their caseload.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 Mar. 2026
African democracies are faltering, some ceding ground to Russia and China.
—Alexanderia Baker-Haidara, semafor.com, 27 Feb. 2026
Maggie Anders, Oc Register, 7 Apr. 2026
But others can ask to maintain more creative control if interested, rather than the traditional practice of ceding it to the industry.
—Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 29 Mar. 2026
Boulee gave the two parties a deadline to agree on a mediator and come to the table, but with the deadline approaching, officials say neither side was ceding any ground.
—Dan Raby, CBS News, 16 Mar. 2026
Southwest Airlines is cutting service at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, effectively ceding ground to the two giants jockeying for dominance at the hub.
—Dallas Morning News, 13 Mar. 2026
Officials at both districts point to the fact that their current offers to their unions are in line with the recommendations of an independent fact finder and that ceding to union demands would mean major programming cuts for students.
—Jennah Pendleton, Sacbee.com, 12 Mar. 2026
Portuguese decolonization and Indonesian interference Since 1520 the Portuguese had maintained a presence on the island of Timor, later obtaining sovereignty over its eastern half in the 19th century and ceding the western half to the Netherlands.
—Agathe Demarolle, Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Mar. 2026
But Scrubs builds the new cast members into each episode bit by bit, ceding a little more narrative ground to them with each episode rather than immediately overwhelming their caseload.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 5 Mar. 2026
African democracies are faltering, some ceding ground to Russia and China.
—Alexanderia Baker-Haidara, semafor.com, 27 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ceding
Verb
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While the company is seen as relinquishing its multi-year lead on the technology, former Apple insiders said there's still hope.—
Alex Harring,
CNBC,
6 Apr. 2026
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The United States has offered Iran a 15-point proposal for a ceasefire that includes it relinquishing control of the strait, but at the same time has ordered thousands more troops to the region — possibly in preparation for a military attempt to wrest the waterway from Iran.—
David Rising,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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This week, on the mayor’s 97th day in office, a crowd gathered in the lobby of the busy Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan to watch as Mamdani announced the city would start transferring Rikers Island jail detainees with serious medical illnesses to a specialized unit at the hospital.—
Anthony Izaguirre,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
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Also on the way out is Justin Pippen, who spent one year at Cal after transferring in from Michigan.—
Michael Nowels,
Mercury News,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In its most hostile version, the same qualities are recast as evidence of his succumbing to spectacle and abdicating basic architectural responsibility.—
Julian Rose,
Artforum,
26 Mar. 2026
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Democratic leaders have accused Congress of abdicating its constitutional role, and some members plan to boycott the address or attend in silent protest.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
23 Feb. 2026
Verb
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After surrendering a lead-off homer in the ninth to William Contreras, Christian Yelich struck out swinging on a wild pitch and ended up at second.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
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In the Bay State Conference, Nick Buckley fired a complete game, surrendering just three hits and one unearned run while striking out eight, fueling Needham to a 2-1 victory over Brookline.—
Tyler McManus,
Boston Herald,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Memories, associations and context all go into assigning value and meaning to an object.—
Brandon Kaipo Moningka,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Apr. 2026
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The selection committee determines the playoff rankings for the 25 teams, assigning the top 12 teams spots in the playoff bracket.—
Matt Murschel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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For a third consecutive year, the person holding the clerk-treasurer’s job for the town of Burns Harbor is resigning in the month of May.—
Jim Woods,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
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Payroll records show that, despite resigning, Dustman has continued to be paid, according to documents obtained by The Star through an open records request.—
Ben Wheeler
April 8,
Kansas City Star,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Antibodies that my body developed to fight the mycoplasma bacteria also destroyed my red blood cells, rendering me briefly anemic.—
Jerome Groopman,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
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Upon arrival, officers saw Long Beach firefighters rendering medical aid to the victim, who was lying in the road.—
Dean Fioresi,
CBS News,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Effectively, Newsom’s slow roll protects him from taking any meaningful actions, thus bequeathing reparations to his successor, like his many other unresolved California issues.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
22 Oct. 2025
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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 15 Apr. 2026.
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