as in seized
to take or make use of under a guise of authority but without actual right
the mayor usurped the school board's authority when he fired the principal
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Recent Examples of usurped
The news comes as the Cybertruck was recently usurped from its position as America's best-selling electric pickup truck in the first quarter of 2025.
—
Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 14 Sep. 2025
Team Cherry The Pale King usurped the ruling deity, the Radiance, a god of light who shines in contrast to the Abyss, a primordial force of darkness that is represented by Void.
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Mamoru Hosoda’s anime riff on Hamlet gives us a princess of Denmark hell-bent on killing the uncle who usurped the crown from her beloved dad.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2025
Resentment soon starts needling away at them as Theo goes over budget and Ivy feels her role as a mother has been usurped — the kids are now too health-conscious even to touch her desserts.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 25 Aug. 2025
Just as cable was usurped by fibre.
—Sam Knight, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
However, Matheus Nunes had usurped him at right-back towards the end of the season and he was left out of the FA Cup final squad.
—David Ornstein, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
The fact that Colby usurped fourth-year pro Nick Zakelj was a bit surprising.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 19 Aug. 2025
The court of public opinion usurped the courts of law.
—Lynn Zovighian, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Aug. 2025
Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 14 Sep. 2025
Team Cherry The Pale King usurped the ruling deity, the Radiance, a god of light who shines in contrast to the Abyss, a primordial force of darkness that is represented by Void.
—Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Mamoru Hosoda’s anime riff on Hamlet gives us a princess of Denmark hell-bent on killing the uncle who usurped the crown from her beloved dad.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 Sep. 2025
Resentment soon starts needling away at them as Theo goes over budget and Ivy feels her role as a mother has been usurped — the kids are now too health-conscious even to touch her desserts.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 25 Aug. 2025
Just as cable was usurped by fibre.
—Sam Knight, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
However, Matheus Nunes had usurped him at right-back towards the end of the season and he was left out of the FA Cup final squad.
—David Ornstein, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
The fact that Colby usurped fourth-year pro Nick Zakelj was a bit surprising.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 19 Aug. 2025
The court of public opinion usurped the courts of law.
—Lynn Zovighian, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for usurped
Verb
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The man reported to the Sheriff’s Office he had been scammed; the Sheriff’s Office then obtained a warrant and seized $14,120 from the ATM.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
4 Oct. 2025
-
The Clermont County Dog Warden seized the animals in May.—
Matthew Cupelli,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Exxon was the first American company to sue Cuban state companies, Cimex and Unión Cuba-Petróleo in 2019, for the exploitation of service stations confiscated by the Cuban government.—
Nora Gamez Torres,
Miami Herald,
3 Oct. 2025
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In this exclusive clip, the sisters encounter one of the magical objects their ancestor confiscated.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The incident occurred near 87th Avenue and Van Buren Street when a man grabbed a girl by the arm.—
Wren Smetana,
AZCentral.com,
3 Oct. 2025
-
Riddle then grabbed Quirke by the collar and threw him down onto a table before walking off the set with a TMZ championship belt.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Yes, Gein dug up graves and stole body parts.—
Christopher Rudolph,
PEOPLE,
4 Oct. 2025
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Swift stole Smashing Machine‘s Dolby Cinemas.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Trammell soon occupied the White House on Homeland (2020), played sleazy blues bandleader Ben on This Is Us (2016–2017), and took the lead on Reckoning (2019–2020).—
Matt Cabral,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Oct. 2025
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Four additional dogs were found in another room that was occupied by both Millers, who are married, according to the release.—
Matthew Cupelli,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Schlittler grew up a Red Sox fan but said his family has fully converted to being Yankees fans since the team drafted him in the seventh round in 2022.—
Brendan Kuty,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
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Rain-fed fields in arid areas that had relied on dry farming for centuries were converted to water-intensive farms growing rice, and alfalfa.—
Nik Kowsar,
Time,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
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According to Instacart's Sweet Tooth study, Utah claimed the crown for the most candy purchased in October 2024.—
Marina Johnson,
Louisville Courier Journal,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Trump dropped a pending Securities and Exchange lawsuit against his key financial backer Binance that claimed the company was misleading its customers and diverting their funds.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Antideficiency Act, first passed in 1870, forbids the federal government from spending money not appropriated by Congress, and guides much of what the federal government can and can’t do during a shutdown.—
Brian Bennett,
Time,
2 Oct. 2025
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Government funding has been appropriated this way for the past nine fiscal years, with Congress cramming 108 spending measures into 13 bills.—
Lazaro Gamio,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Usurped.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/usurped. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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