1
as in succumbing
to cease resistance (as to another's arguments, demands, or control)
encouraged her to stand firm and not knuckle under to political pressure
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in surrendering
to yield to the control or power of enemy forces
the remote outpost was overrun and forced to knuckle under
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knuckling under
Verb
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The church's front doors lay in pieces, succumbing to the flames and the pressure of the water.—
Noe Padilla,
The Indianapolis Star,
24 Dec. 2024 -
Frey said believes Hoover slipped on the ice, fell to the ground and was unable to get back up before succumbing to harsh weather conditions.—
Craig Shoup,
The Tennessean,
22 Dec. 2024
Verb
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At that time, the Cowboys, in their first full game without Dak Prescott at quarterback, were a dysfunctional team surrendering the league’s third-most rushing yards per game.—
Brooks Kubena,
The Athletic,
27 Dec. 2024
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The Chargers puffed their chest, all right, with a defense which allowed just three points in the final two quarters after surrendering points in Denver’s first three possessions.—
Jay Paris,
Forbes,
20 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Residing or working in the country without legal status and submitting false documents to government authorities for a range of benefits or for employment is already a federal crime.—
Ray Stern,
The Arizona Republic,
24 Dec. 2024
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After submitting those contributions for public matching funds, the Adams campaign raked in an additional $22,000 in taxpayers’ cash off of them, records show.—
Chris Sommerfeldt,
New York Daily News,
23 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Though that sentence could also have stopped after four words, the statistics really are bad — conceding around one goal every 10 corners faced.—
Jacob Whitehead,
The Athletic,
3 Jan. 2025
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Newcastle, meanwhile, had won four games in succession, scoring 14 and conceding only once.—
Chris Waugh,
The Athletic,
31 Dec. 2024
Verb
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This weekend, a cartoonist quit her job after an editor rejected her sketch of the newspaper's owner and other media executives bowing before the president-elect.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
5 Jan. 2025
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Joe Biden’s last weeks as president will be spent bowing to environmentalists by trying to permanently ban new offshore oil and natural gas.—
Andrew Follett,
National Review,
5 Jan. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Knuckling under.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knuckling%20under. Accessed 22 May. 2025.
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