1
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
2
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of succumbing
There seemed to be an element of sadomasochistic play in their relationship, of withholding and succumbing, that contravenes the popular sense of an unremitting dominant-submissive dynamic.
—
Daphne Merkin, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2025
To the public eye, this might look like scientists are succumbing to groupthink and an unreasonable resistance to any new ideas.
—Big Think, 30 Oct. 2025
Beyond her torrid relationship with Taissa Turner, Van felt like a voice of reason in a sea of noise — steadfast in her effort to reform after her time in The Wilderness rather than succumbing to its violent will.
—Catherine Mhloyi, Them., 29 Oct. 2025
One of the biggest threats to Aledo’s national-record, 132-game district winning streak came a year ago when North Richland Hills Richland took the Bearcats to overtime before succumbing.
—Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Oct. 2025
Since then, the neighborhood bar and restaurant has upped its game, succumbing to the double-smash trend and doing it pretty well.
—Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 22 Oct. 2025
Everything has broken right for Egbuka since the moment he was drafted, with Chris Godwin having a setback from his 2024 injury, Jalen McMillan severely injuring his neck and then Mike Evans succumbing to his annual hamstring injury.
—Michael Salfino, New York Times, 6 Oct. 2025
Alas, Waller wasn’t targeted again and the Dolphins punted on six of their final seven possessions, succumbing 27-24 in a gut-wrenching loss at Carolina to fall to 1-4.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 5 Oct. 2025
Bin Laden outlasted Bellevue, too, before succumbing.
—Ben McGrath, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
Daphne Merkin, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2025
To the public eye, this might look like scientists are succumbing to groupthink and an unreasonable resistance to any new ideas.
—Big Think, 30 Oct. 2025
Beyond her torrid relationship with Taissa Turner, Van felt like a voice of reason in a sea of noise — steadfast in her effort to reform after her time in The Wilderness rather than succumbing to its violent will.
—Catherine Mhloyi, Them., 29 Oct. 2025
One of the biggest threats to Aledo’s national-record, 132-game district winning streak came a year ago when North Richland Hills Richland took the Bearcats to overtime before succumbing.
—Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Oct. 2025
Since then, the neighborhood bar and restaurant has upped its game, succumbing to the double-smash trend and doing it pretty well.
—Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 22 Oct. 2025
Everything has broken right for Egbuka since the moment he was drafted, with Chris Godwin having a setback from his 2024 injury, Jalen McMillan severely injuring his neck and then Mike Evans succumbing to his annual hamstring injury.
—Michael Salfino, New York Times, 6 Oct. 2025
Alas, Waller wasn’t targeted again and the Dolphins punted on six of their final seven possessions, succumbing 27-24 in a gut-wrenching loss at Carolina to fall to 1-4.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 5 Oct. 2025
Bin Laden outlasted Bellevue, too, before succumbing.
—Ben McGrath, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for succumbing
Verb
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Going public via a traditional IPO, after all, means submitting to intense financial scrutiny from banks, investors and regulators.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
10 Nov. 2025
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And students in English classes often used online tools like Grammarly to check grammar and punctuation before submitting assignments.—
Silas Allen,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 Nov. 2025
Verb
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How to Watch Arizona Cardinals vs Dallas Cowboys The Cowboys struggled defensively in their 44-24 road loss to the Denver Broncos last week, surrendering four touchdown passes and 426 yards of offense.—
Ben Verbrugge,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Nov. 2025
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Andrew might not move to Sandringham until after the Christmas holidays, another source said, because giving notice, surrendering the lease and orchestrating the move is expected to take some time.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Singing this material with players who improvise — solos changing, every version being a little different — taught me about that urgent live-ensemble space where everyone’s living and dying by the next player onstage.—
Shirley Halperin,
Rolling Stone,
5 Nov. 2025
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Shaw-naé explains how then-mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani is dying to speak with her, how the Venmo CEO invited her to some fancy app meeting, all while Al Roker is buzzing on her phone to give an update on Friday’s upcoming dinner service.—
Mackenzie Cummings-Grady,
Billboard,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Yet on the road Spurs are the best team in the land, earning 13 points from 15, scoring 12 goals and conceding only three.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
3 Nov. 2025
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Without conceding much, Washington could stop cross-strait antagonisms from descending further and create room for a better trajectory to emerge.—
STEPHEN WERTHEIM,
Foreign Affairs,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Even though only 10 Middle Eastern countries are fielding titles, the region is yielding its most competitive lineup in years.—
Alissa Simon,
Variety,
5 Nov. 2025
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Compare that to cash in a savings account earning less than 1% nowadays — or even the best money market accounts yielding 4%, roughly the same as the 10-year Treasury .—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Yet in practice, America is now collecting billions from importers, much of it falling on carbon-intensive goods and places.—
Newsweek Staff,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Try to find a place that will block blowing or falling debris.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The Cannes-bowing film, starring Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù and set against the backdrop of political arrest in 1993 Nigeria, leads the pack of titles going into this year’s BIFA ceremony with 12 nominations, including best British independent film and director.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
3 Nov. 2025
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In Indiana, Republican Governor Mike Braun called a special legislative session for next Monday to weigh redistricting proposals in his state, bowing to a White House pressure campaign.—
Steve Gorman,
USA Today,
29 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Bohlin said that the Swedish Board of Agriculture would procure emergency stockpiling of grain in northern Sweden, which would be circulated so as not to disrupt market mechanisms and to avoid stocks perishing.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Oct. 2025
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The boys didn't always survive their adventures, with one perishing from a snake bite and another drowning in a Bolivian flood.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
17 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Succumbing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/succumbing. Accessed 13 Nov. 2025.
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