Thesaurus results for USURPING

usurping

verb

present participle of usurp

as in seizing

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 usurping The opposition’s narrative that Hollywood is usurping home rule is entirely backward. —

Keith Poliakoff, Sun Sentinel, 1 June 2026 But even with the UFC’s challenges, no rival promotion has come close to usurping the sport’s power dynamic. —

Mark Puleo, New York Times, 21 May 2026 Hegseth and Feinberg, Phelan said, had imposed rigid control over submarine and shipbuilding decisions, effectively usurping the Navy’s authority, these people said. —

Dan Lamothe, Washington Post, 2 May 2026 One wonders how long the citizens of those communities are going to put up with the state usurping their authority to govern themselves. —

Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 9 Apr. 2026 One of the things that's gone really wrong in America is this gas station/convenience store/fast food restaurant that is usurping small town America. —

Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 26 Mar. 2026 This would seem to challenge the notion that AI usurping human skills will democratize them—for instance, by broadening who is able to contribute meaningfully to math’s advancement. —

Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 16 Mar. 2026 Callie is popular and vivacious, perpetually surrounded by admirers and various hangers-on (Audrey Grace Marshall’s Cara is hellbent on usurping Minnie’s place in Callie’s life, while her himbo-esque boyfriend Brad is given wonderful dimension through Beck Nolan’s sneaky-good performance). —

Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 13 Feb. 2026 The War of the Two Caesars also serves as a nice mirror for everything going down with the Brotherhood, Elder Cleric Quintus still hellbent on usurping the Commonwealth despite the arrival of Kumail Nanjiani’s Paladin Xander Harkness, an emissary from that neck of the woods. —

Jack King, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for usurping

Verb

Survivors describe squeezing through treacherous tunnels and seizing a brief drop in water levels to walk out, as tearful scenes greeted their emergence and uncertainty lingers over the missing pair.

— Jintamas Saksornchai, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2026
In recent years, the Houthis have demonstrated their ability to disrupt maritime navigation near Bab al-Mandeb by attacking, seizing and sinking vessels passing through its waters.

— CNN Staff, CNN Money, 29 May 2026