relented

verb

past tense of relent
1
as in succumbed
to cease resistance (as to another's arguments, demands, or control) the supervisor finally relented in the face of the petition, and allowed employees to take longer lunch breaks

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in subsided
to grow less in scope or intensity especially gradually the fury of the storm relented, and the next day the sun finally broke through the clouds

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of relented After a public backlash, Microsoft relented and vowed no such legal action would occur. — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 9 July 2026 In camp that afternoon, the wind relented, and the heat settled in for the first time. — John Todd, Outdoor Life, 9 July 2026 Hulsey has not relented in his refusal to accept that the city administrator has taken up some of his duties. — Rachel Royster july 8, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 8 July 2026 Ohtani eventually relented a second run with two outs in the fourth inning. — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 4 July 2026 By the time the two relented, the album’s master tapes had been lost. — George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 July 2026 Worcester eventually relented and provided more records, the ACLU said, but still withheld reports for more than a dozen incidents. — Topher Sanders, ProPublica, 30 June 2026 With more depth on the pitching staff this season, coach Yvette Tovar finally relented. — Michael Osipoff, Chicago Tribune, 25 June 2026 Houston has relented, however, following the council’s ouster of Commissioner Omar Farmer, an outspoken police critic, and a cooling-off of tensions between Houston and Commissioner Ricardo Garcia-Acosta, the current chair of the watchdog body. — Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 24 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for relented
  1. succumbed
  2. subsided
  3. conceded
  4. decreased
  5. submitted
  6. diminished
  7. surrendered
  8. fell
Verb
  • One of the victims, still unidentified, succumbed to his injuries at the hospital, police said.
    — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 14 July 2026
  • Of course, Franken himself succumbed to the same type of allegations and insinuations.
    — Elisabeth Garber-Paul, Rolling Stone, 11 July 2026
Definition of succumbed
Verb
  • Violence flared and subsided periodically, and Lebanon and Israel reached ceasefire agreements in 1993, 1996 and after a 2006 war.
    — Anthony Wanis-St John, The Conversation, 10 July 2026
  • Execution remains the big question, but doubts around Apple's strategy have largely subsided.
    — Kevin Stankiewicz,Zev Fima, CNBC, 10 July 2026
Definition of subsided
Verb
  • No team has scored as many goals as Argentina at this tournament (19) and no team has conceded fewer than Spain (1).
    — Ben Church, CNN Money, 19 July 2026
  • Spain have conceded just one goal in seven matches this tournament.
    — Colin Millar, New York Times, 19 July 2026
Definition of conceded
Verb
  • Researchers could not attribute increased or decreased beach erosion to higher global average temperatures.
    — Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 July 2026
  • So while the air won’t be clear Sunday, the greatest risk appears to have passed and the threat of rain or lightning interrupting the game also has decreased, with the forecast calling for temperatures in the mid-80s and 55% humidity at kickoff.
    — Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 18 July 2026
Definition of decreased
Verb
  • In a filing submitted July 6, ABC argued the issue had already been settled, pointing to a 2002 FCC decision granting the program that exemption.
    — Tiago Ventura, Time, 17 July 2026
  • City planning staff member Katelyn Davison told City Council that when the application for the storage site was first submitted in September 2025, the area had been planned to be used to build a community center.
    — Noah Daly July 17, Idaho Statesman, 17 July 2026
Definition of submitted
Verb
  • The ocean’s abundance had been dramatically diminished, but few recreational fishermen noticed; their expectations had been downsized, too.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 July 2026
  • Kylian Mbappé’s powers were diminished in that tournament after sustaining a broken nose, while emerging stars like Michael Olise and Désiré Doué were yet to break through.
    — James Robson, Chicago Tribune, 13 July 2026
Definition of diminished
Verb
  • The sheriff's office said the inmate heard the K-9 unit and surrendered, being taken back into custody without further incident.
    — Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 13 July 2026
  • The tipping point came when Wrobleski surrendered eight runs to the Washington Nationals in his first start last season.
    — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2026
Definition of surrendered
Verb
  • Countless trees were felled and taken to Eugene for processing in mills or floated up the Willamette to Portland, the sawn trunks chained together in massive, bobbing rafts.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 July 2026
  • Messi had produced another vintage performance three weeks earlier, this time at the Nou Camp, where the Bayern Munich defender Jerome Boateng toppled over like a tree that had been felled.
    — Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 10 July 2026
Definition of fell

Browse Nearby Words

relent
relented
relenting
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Relented.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/relented. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on relented

Nglish: Translation of relented for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of raffish

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All