relinquish

verb

re·lin·quish ri-ˈliŋ-kwish

-ˈlin-

relinquished; relinquishing; relinquishes

transitive verb

: to withdraw or retreat from : leave behind

: give up

relinquish a title

: to stop holding physically : release

slowly relinquished his grip on the bar

: to give over possession or control of : yield

few leaders willingly relinquish power

relinquishment

ri-ˈliŋ-kwish-mənt

-ˈlin-

noun

Choose the Right Synonym for relinquish

relinquish, yield, resign, surrender, abandon, waive mean to give up completely.

relinquish usually does not imply strong feeling but may suggest some regret, reluctance, or weakness.

relinquished her crown

yield implies concession or compliance or submission to force.

the troops yielded ground grudgingly

resign emphasizes voluntary relinquishment or sacrifice without struggle.

resigned her position

surrender implies a giving up after a struggle to retain or resist.

surrendered their claims

abandon stresses finality and completeness in giving up.

abandoned all hope

waive implies conceding or forgoing with little or no compulsion.

waived the right to a trial by jury

Example Sentences

They had turned to an open adoption after pursuing infertility treatments for 18 years, and the birth mother had agreed to relinquish custody at the hospital.

Emily Nussbaum, Discover, January 2000 In April of that year Albert Slyusar, one of the legendary figures of the Afghanistan war, had relinquished command of 103 Guards Airborne Division.

Carey Schofield, The Russian Elite, 1993 The feedback seems to operate on the premise that people who relinquish the civilized art of maintaining creative cities are not to be entrusted with the risks of developing further.

Jane Jacobs, Cities and the Wealth of Nations, (1984) 1985 The Major no sooner heard the voice, than he relinquished Mr Dombey's arm, darted forward, took the hand of the lady in the chair and pressed it to his lips.

Charles Dickens, Dombey and Son, 1848 I will not relinquish my rights. She was forced to relinquish control of the project. The court ordered him to relinquish custody of his child. See More

Recent Examples on the Web Army: After winning the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy four of the last five years, Army had to finally relinquish it to Air Force after a 13-7 loss in West Point.

Dan Wolken, USA TODAY, 6 Nov. 2022 Hayden, who has defended his handling of the case and declined to relinquish it, said Wednesday that his office will open a grand jury investigation into the April 2021 incident.

Shelley Murphy, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Aug. 2022 Cfius early this year required that Mr. Chao relinquish his two TuSimple board seats and that the company better secure its data and technology.

Heather Somerville, WSJ, 30 Oct. 2022 Offenders are expected to relinquish their weapons on their own and sometimes are not even told to do so.

Heather Buckner, Good Housekeeping, 24 Sep. 2022 The Neighborhood Charter Network, which manages Kindezi and Enlace Academy, plans to relinquish Kindezi’s charter back to the city’s Office of Education Innovation and close at the end of the current school year.

Arika Herron, The Indianapolis Star, 19 Feb. 2022 Steven Teets apologized to the homeowner, Mirella Castaneda, and has agreed to relinquish his police certification and meet face-to-face with Castaneda before a restorative justice facilitator.

oregonlive, 20 Dec. 2021 On an unusually warm fall evening at Citizens Bank Park, Alvarez launched an 0-2 pitch from Phillies starter Aaron Nola deep into Ashburn Alley in right-center field for a 2-0 lead the Astros would never relinquish.

Steve Gardner, USA TODAY, 3 Nov. 2022 Last year, Evergrande was already mired in deep debt, but the property giant averted a potential default when a group of wealthy investors agreed to relinquish their right to force Evergrande's $13 billion debt repayment.

Yvonne Lau, Fortune, 21 Sep. 2021 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'relinquish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English relinquisshen, from Anglo-French relinquiss-, stem of relinquir, from Latin relinquere to leave behind, from re- + linquere to leave — more at loan

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of relinquish was in the 15th century

See more words from the same century