SUCCUMBING Synonyms: 115 Similar and Opposite Words

succumbing

verb

present participle of succumb

as in submitting

to cease resistance (as to another's arguments, demands, or control) he finally succumbed and let his wife get rid of his dilapidated easy chair

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in surrendering

to give up and cease resistance (as to a liking, temptation, or habit) refused to succumb to her fears and defiantly walked through the dark cemetery

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as in dying

to stop living the patient lay so still and pale that everyone thought he had succumbed, and then he opened his eyes

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as in falling

to yield to the control or power of enemy forces the doctor worked tirelessly until finally he, too, succumbed to the fever

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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 succumbing His talent for facing every danger head-on did not prevent Altobelli from succumbing to self-defeat. — J. B. MacKinnon, Harpers Magazine, 27 Oct. 2026 Short enough to read in a single sitting, Sara Gran’s chilling story of an architect succumbing to demonic possession will leave readers stunned and unsettled. — David Faris, TheWeek, 23 Oct. 2026 Making a brief trip to his native Gotham before production of his next movie begins, Matt makes the mistake of succumbing to the advances of a gorgeous young woman on the dance floor of a nightclub. — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 21 Oct. 2026 These rosy reveries gradually darken as Wilde remembers succumbing to hedonism, deceit, debt, and disgrace. — Hannah Aizenman, New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2026 At the time, despite receiving rave reviews, the Scottish actor was succumbing to complications from AIDS. — Payton Turkeltaub, Variety, 28 Sep. 2026 But rather than succumbing to any one style, Lam developed a unique voice shaped by surrealism, cubism and his heritage as the son of a Chinese immigrant father and a mixed-race mother. — Jane Wooldridge, Miami Herald, 24 Sep. 2026 The movie ends with Bryan successfully getting his package to the scientists working on a cure, but shortly thereafter succumbing to his infection, turning into an increasingly grotesque (though conflicted) monster and killing them all. — Joshua Rivera, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026 The stone never does talk to Larry, and Dillard ends that story by succumbing to her faith in the nothingness. — Isabel Fattal, The Atlantic, 16 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for succumbing

Verb

Now Plum is demanding accountability, with the district's athletic director filing a formal complaint on Monday and submitting the video to the WPIAL for review.

— CBS News, CBS News, 4 Nov. 2026
Budget woes One of the governor’s first challenges out of the gate will be submitting a state budget in January to legislators.

— Jenny Jarvie Follow, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of submitting

Verb

Through three quarters, the Kansas City Chiefs had held the Denver Broncos to 13 points, building an 11-point lead despite surrendering a touchdown on fourth down after three stops near the goal line.

— Pete Sweeney, Kansas City Star, 2 Nov. 2026
The central wager of an economic security alliance is that the United States can gain leverage over China by surrendering some leverage over its allies.

— THEODORE BUNZEL, Foreign Affairs, 2 Nov. 2026

Definition of surrendering

Verb

Arthur is dying for the family to find out about Reggie’s son Carmelo (Jalyn Hall) and his secret relationship with Delilah Basmati (Arica Himmel), daughter of Reggie’s nemesis, Jerry Basmati (Craig Robinson).

— Ben Travers, IndieWire, 2 Nov. 2026
People are dying regularly from lithium-ion batteries and people are being disfigured.

— Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 1 Nov. 2026

Definition of dying

Verb

With the recent proliferation of agents and their ability to comparison shop for higher-yielding investments (just like buying a sweater), financial stocks have taken a hit.

— Alexa LoMonaco, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026
Its materials describe every decision as traceable and explainable, with the same file yielding the same answer.

— Ethan Stone, Sacbee.com, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of yielding

Verb

The Senate homeland security committee has one of the broadest investigative jurisdictions in Congress, with instances of waste, fraud, abuse, corruption, and mismanagement across the federal government all falling within the panel’s purview.

— Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 4 Nov. 2026
In a potentially troublesome sign for the future, analysts have noted that while tech earnings remain strong, many of their potential clients are struggling, with borrowing weak and non-AI investment falling.

— semafor.com, semafor.com, 4 Nov. 2026