1
as in leaves
to give up (a job or office)
with the advent of his 90th birthday, he could no longer resist calls for him to step down from chairmanship of the board
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in resigns
to give up (as a position of authority) formally
even in the face of a palace revolt, Queen Elizabeth I refused to step down from the throne
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for steps down (from)
Verb
-
The end of Pittsburgh’s season leaves a rather large elephant in the room.—
Kevin Dotson,
CNN Money,
13 Jan. 2026 -
Measles can live in the air for up to two hours after someone infected with measles leaves the room, according to the health department.—
Alexandra Simon,
CBS News,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In the season 4 finale, Moriarty's Ben resigns after a case involving the Russian mob results in the murder of a witness.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Majority Leader Tyler August vowed to initiate such proceedings unless Dugan resigns.—
Molly Beck,
jsonline.com,
19 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
As Buffett relinquishes the helm, investors are increasingly focused on what disappears with him.—
Yun Li,
CNBC,
1 Jan. 2026
-
The first rule of power politics is that nobody relinquishes authority willingly.—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
When the federal government abdicates its responsibility for public health, states, localities, and communities of experts can still try to fill the void.—
Dhruv Khullar,
New Yorker,
24 Sep. 2025
-
When in a turn of events, Theo abdicates from his position as Duke of Tintagel, and would therefore be divorcing Nan to be with Lizzie, Nan runs away to protect her baby, who would be the heir of Tintagel.—
Maelle Beauget-Uhl,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
In the film American Beauty (1999), the moment Lester Burnham quits his job, walks out of his cubicle with a beer in hand—that’s it.—
JD Barker,
Rolling Stone,
14 Jan. 2026
-
The graying halls of Congress don’t usually evoke images of youthful ambition, but a record number of lawmakers are calling it quits in 2026.—
Greg Bluestein,
AJC.com,
9 Jan. 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Steps down (from).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/steps%20down%20%28from%29. Accessed 17 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
