dethrone
Americanverb (used with object)
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dethrones,
present (3rd person singular)
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dethroned,
past participle, past
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dethroning
present participle
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to remove from a throne; depose.
-
to remove from any position of power or authority.
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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dethronesimple
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dethronessimple
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have dethronedperfect
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has dethronedperfect
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am dethroningprogressive
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are dethroningprogressive
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is dethroningprogressive
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have been dethroningperfect progressive
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has been dethroningperfect progressive
Past
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dethronedsimple
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had dethronedperfect
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was dethroningprogressive
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were dethroningprogressive
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had been dethroningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dethrone
Explanation
To dethrone means to remove a king or queen from power, like when Mary, Queen of Scots was kicked out of Scotland. You can also dethrone someone less formally, as when you dethrone your school's fastest runner by beating her mile time. In today's politics, to force a leader out of office is to depose them — except in the case of a monarchy, when we use the word dethrone. It literally means "to remove from the throne" and therefore refers specifically to those who sit on thrones: namely, kings and queens. You can also use this word in a figurative way to mean "remove from a dominant position." So, for example, you can say that the new jump rope champion dethrones the previous record holder.
Vocabulary lists containing dethrone
Get Out of Town!
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for May 31–June 6, 2026
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Adventures of Don Quixote
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The hero of this round-of-32 shootout was Paraguay’s 26-year-old goalkeeper Orlando Gill, who stopped two German efforts to give the No. 34-ranked country in the world a chance to dethrone the four-time champions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
The 17-year-old recovered from a horror crash to dethrone the United States' two-time defending champion Chloe Kim in the halfpipe on Thursday in Italy.
From Barron's ● Feb. 13, 2026
After a disastrous rookie season, Williams—the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2024—exhibited astonishing progress over the course of the year to dethrone the Detroit Lions in the NFC North.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 5, 2026
If Crawford can dethrone Alvarez in Nevada, it won't just be another indulgence.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2025
Now supremely confident of his chances of winning both the eighth and the ninth games, which would give him the match, Bobby rather formally declared that he would dethrone Spassky.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
October 14: The Airbus A320 dethrones the Boeing 737 as the leader in terms of all-time aircraft deliveries.
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
Qualcomm can compete — not as the company that dethrones Nvidia, but as a credible, differentiated option in a fast-growing market.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 25, 2026
It is not every day a huge underdog dethrones a living legend.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2022
The 13-foot fish dethrones the former record-holder, a 646-pound catfish found in northern Thailand in 2005.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 21, 2022
One poet dethrones another and the reader gets the impression that the later poet is always superior to the earlier one because he has destroyed convention, and introduced what is often a minor change.
From The Literature of Ecstasy by Albert Mordell
Thorslund, 32, dethroned Cherneka Johnson in August to claim the WBC, WBO, WBA and IBF titles.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
Once Protestantism was dethroned, historians excavated almost every part of the nation’s spiritual landscape.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 19, 2026
The result lifts Saints up to second while Wigan could be dethroned from top spot if Leeds beat Bradford in their derby later on Friday.
From BBC ● Apr. 3, 2026
A year ago, Marc Chandler, a veteran currency strategist now at Bannockburn Capital Markets, argued that the dollar wasn’t at risk of being dethroned during an onstage debate at a foreign exchange conference.
From Barron's ● Feb. 19, 2026
He ruled over the other Titans until his son Zeus dethroned him and seized the power for himself.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Chinese automakers are moving headlong onto German carmakers’ home turf after dethroning them in China, previously their strongest overseas market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
And now you know you’re not mounting a monumental upset and dethroning the defending NBA champions.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2026
China has reclaimed its title as Germany's top trading partner, dethroning the United States after President Donald Trump launched his tariff onslaught, official data showed Wednesday.
From Barron's ● Nov. 19, 2025
As it continues to grow in popularity across the United States, perhaps dethroning the matcha trend, do as I do and when you see pandan on offer — try it.
From Salon ● Feb. 3, 2025
Another was, that he had a plan for seizing the young prince, dethroning Mary, and reigning himself in her stead, in the prince's name.
From Mary Queen of Scots Makers of History by Jacob Abbott
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
