1
as in relinquishing
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress
the toddler surrendered the doll to her mother after a brief struggle the commander surrendered the garrison without having fired a single shot
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in succumbing
to cease resistance (as to another's arguments, demands, or control)
the father refused to surrender to his son's constant begging for a BB gun
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in resigning
to give up (as a position of authority) formally
the aging queen refused to surrender the throne to her increasingly impatient heir
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in submitting
to give up and cease resistance (as to a liking, temptation, or habit)
determined to give up smoking, she so far has not surrendered to her incessant desire to have a cigarette
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in falling
to yield to the control or power of enemy forces
General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant on April 9, 1865, thus ending the Civil War
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in indulging
to give (oneself) over to something especially unrestrainedly
laid-off workers who surrender themselves to despair will almost certainly never regain their footing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in yielding
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
as in relinquishment
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
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 surrendering
Rafael Motamayor, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2025
Will Sammon, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2025
Mazur exited after surrendering back-to-back singles with one out.
—Steve Gorten, Miami Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
But on a day when Mizzou amassed 595 total yards, converted 4 of 5 fourth downs and got an excellent effort from first-year starting quarterback Beau Pribula, surrendering possession had to fill Kansas followers with a sense of dread.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 7 Sep. 2025
That new-look unit scuffled on Sunday, surrendering four sacks and nine quarterback hits while struggling to clear rushing lanes.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 7 Sep. 2025
Before too long, though, Sacrifice ventures off into much stranger, more sincere territory, becoming a drama that mulls over surrendering to a higher power.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 7 Sep. 2025
Stines briefly left the courthouse after the shooting before turning around and voluntarily surrendering, Det.
—Andy Rose, CNN Money, 6 Sep. 2025
Everyday New Yorkers are not giving up, are not giving in, are not surrendering.
—John Santucci, ABC News, 5 Sep. 2025
The suspect then stumbled and dropped his wig before surrendering, the news outlet reported.
—Raven Brunner, People.com, 31 Aug. 2025
Verb
The Mule lands on the planet, and Indbur the weasel immediately kneels before the pirate, completely surrendering.
—Rafael Motamayor, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2025
Noun
Clay Holmes followed that up Wednesday by lasting four innings (plus two batters) and surrendering four runs.
—Will Sammon, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2025
Mazur exited after surrendering back-to-back singles with one out.
—Steve Gorten, Miami Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
But on a day when Mizzou amassed 595 total yards, converted 4 of 5 fourth downs and got an excellent effort from first-year starting quarterback Beau Pribula, surrendering possession had to fill Kansas followers with a sense of dread.
—Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star, 7 Sep. 2025
That new-look unit scuffled on Sunday, surrendering four sacks and nine quarterback hits while struggling to clear rushing lanes.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 7 Sep. 2025
Before too long, though, Sacrifice ventures off into much stranger, more sincere territory, becoming a drama that mulls over surrendering to a higher power.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 7 Sep. 2025
Stines briefly left the courthouse after the shooting before turning around and voluntarily surrendering, Det.
—Andy Rose, CNN Money, 6 Sep. 2025
Everyday New Yorkers are not giving up, are not giving in, are not surrendering.
—John Santucci, ABC News, 5 Sep. 2025
The suspect then stumbled and dropped his wig before surrendering, the news outlet reported.
—Raven Brunner, People.com, 31 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surrendering
Verb
-
The cost of obtaining them will very quickly amount to billions of dollars, which could force Musk to pay by relinquishing shares.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
5 Sep. 2025
-
His mother would soon pass, and Agee hadn’t had the opportunity to find a new place to live after relinquishing his apartment pre-Suicide Squad.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
In late July, Kwame’s brother, Jabari, was also euthanized after succumbing to arthritis.—
Devoun Cetoute,
Miami Herald,
5 Sep. 2025
-
The Californian took the first set against Ekaterina Alexandrova at last year’s tournament and had her vastly more experienced Russian opponent on the ropes on several occasions before eventually succumbing.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
27 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The independent journalist Ken Klippenstein, who has broken stories on national security on his eponymous Substack, has seemingly bullied older congressional staffers into doing more media appearances (or resigning from their jobs outright).—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
15 Sep. 2025
-
But he was impeached in 1992 for corruption, resigning before the Brazilian Senate could, in effect, remove him.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Ukraine has been submitting films for the international feature category since 1997 but has yet to secure a nomination.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
14 Sep. 2025
-
Silva is coming off a dominant performance at UFC 314, submitting Bryce Mitchell in the second round.—
Trent Reinsmith,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
And, heck, even Friday, particularly with Travis Kelce indulging and inciting fans at Neo Quimica Arena with dance moves during warmups before the Chiefs took on the Los Angeles Chargers.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
6 Sep. 2025
-
This isn’t about indulging individual preferences, but rather maximizing human potential.—
Neil Henderson,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Yields on savings accounts and bonds decline, making non-yielding assets like gold more attractive.—
Frank Holmes,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
-
As a non-yielding asset, gold typically performs well in a falling interest-rate environment.—
,
CNBC,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
This is less computationally intensive than actually rendering all three of those frames; it can be combined with MetalFX's existing temporal upscaling, boosting performance even further.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
15 Sep. 2025
-
But the speed came from all three levels of Green Bay’s defense, rendering Washington’s offense almost inoperative.—
Nicki Jhabvala,
New York Times,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
On territory, Ukraine says its constitution precludes it from conceding any land.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Another is the reaction by the German team, both to Thursday’s result but also to conceding the equalizer today.—
Manuel Veth,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Surrendering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surrendering. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share