Thesaurus results for USURPS

usurps

verb

present tense third-person singular of usurp

as in seizes

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 usurps California courts have repeatedly refused to rewrite unconstitutional tax statutes on the grounds that this usurps the role of the Legislature or, in the case of an initiative, the people. — Jared Walczak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 July 2026 After witnessing Sinner miss 16 break points against the same opponent on Friday, Alcaraz would have been forgiven for worrying that something similar might happen to him — especially against arguably tennis’s greatest escape artist, at least until the Spaniard usurps him. — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026 Jokic usurps Nurkic Jusuf Nurkic became Jokic’s first backup center in unceremonious fashion, getting benched by Michael Malone 25 games into his third season. — Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 20 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for usurps

Verb

Sid is smart enough to sniff this out, and the show seizes the opportunity to raise the romantic stakes through an adorably British expression of mutual libidinousness.

— Scott Tobias, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026
That reporting revealed that the state frequently seizes money from legal settlements stemming from medical malpractice, police brutality, workplace injury and other wrongful death lawsuits.

— Ginny Monk, Hartford Courant, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of seizes

Verb

Arriving from Barcelona, the local landlord, however, confiscates Fagas’ America rifle, given to him by his father.

— John Hopewell, Variety, 23 Oct. 2026
Large swaths of the film are composed of close-ups of people’s faces or hands, giving seemingly mundane exchanges and gestures — say, a moment when Evans, unimpressed with Holmes’s egg-whisking technique, confiscates the bowl — greater weight.

— Alex Barasch, Vulture, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of confiscates

Verb

Why the ridiculous prices are worth it Bob Baffert grabs a water out of a nearby cooler to keep the searing heat and humidity at bay.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2026
Illinois center Tomislav Ivišić grabs a rebound past UConn forward Jayden Ross during the first half of their Final Four game on April 4, 2026, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

— Steve Megargee, Chicago Tribune, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of grabs

Verb

Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo steals the ball from UConn guard Kayleigh Heckel during the second half in an Elite Eight game on March 29, 2026, in Fort Worth, Texas.

— Doug Feinberg, Chicago Tribune, 1 Nov. 2026
Plus, in the end, another chain, Sizzler, swoops in and steals all the cows.

— Payton Turkeltaub, Variety, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of steals

Verb

Strikes target strategic island Qeshm Island occupies a critical position near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important energy shipping routes.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 3 Nov. 2026
The Walnut Room occupies a 17,000-square-foot space on the seventh floor of the former Marshall Field and Company Building and is the first and longest-running department store restaurant, opening in 1907 as the South Tea Room.

— Allison Yates, Midwest Living, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of occupies

Verb

City administrators have maintained that North Carolina state law preempts local governments from mandating wage or benefit floors for private subcontractors.

— Chase Jordan October 30, Charlotte Observer, 30 Oct. 2026
The key legal questions being grappled with by courts throughout the US are whether event contracts offered by prediction markets qualify as swaps, and whether the CFTC jurisdiction over swaps preempts states from applying their gambling laws.

— Jon Brodkin, ArsTechnica, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of preempts

Verb

The pair’s winding route from River’s late grandfather’s country house to Diana’s beach retreat, which Slough House head Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman) cheekily appropriates as a safe house, is a winding one.

— Alison Herman, Variety, 21 Oct. 2026
Tiki bars aren’t without criticism, having occasionally been attacked as escapist fantasy that appropriates Hawaiian or Polynesian iconography.

— Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of appropriates

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usurping

usurps

utensil

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“Usurps.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/usurps. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of usurps

verb

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