dethrone

American  

[dee-throhn] / diˈθroʊn /

verb (used with object)

• dethrones,
  present (3rd person singular)
• dethroned,
  past participle,  past
• dethroning
  present participle

1. to remove from a throne; depose.

2. to remove from any position of power or authority.

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dethrone British  

/ dɪˈθrəʊn /

verb

1. (tr) to remove from a throne or deprive of any high position or title; depose

   the champion was dethroned by a young boxer

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• dethronement
  noun
• dethroner
  noun
• undethroned
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• dethroning
  present
• dethroned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• dethrone
  simple
• dethrones
  simple
• have dethroned
  perfect
• has dethroned
  perfect
• am dethroning
  progressive
• are dethroning
  progressive
• is dethroning
  progressive
• have been dethroning
  perfect progressive
• has been dethroning
  perfect progressive

Past

• dethroned
  simple
• had dethroned
  perfect
• was dethroning
  progressive
• were dethroning
  progressive
• had been dethroning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will dethrone
  simple
• will have dethroned
  perfect
• will be dethroning
  progressive
• will have been dethroning
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of dethrone

First recorded in 1600–10; de- + throne

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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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dethrone dethrones dethroned dethroning

Dubois registers a second successive stoppage victory over Wardley, just five months after climbing off the canvas twice to dethrone his British rival in a thrilling 11-round contest in Manchester.

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

Armed with the cash generated by selling around a third of the club to Bezos and company, Liverpool will seek to dethrone Arsenal and claim a record 21st English title.

From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026

The 41-year-old star will join Jaylen Brown, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey on a Philadelphia team that will aim to dethrone the New York Knicks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Another clip shows Robert Pattinson sporting a platinum blond buzzcut and staring menacingly in his role as Scytale, who is a new addition to the films and is described as wanting to dethrone Atreides.

From BBC ● Mar. 18, 2026

We were better equipped than many founders of dynasties had been when they walked north to dethrone an emperor; they had been peasants like us.

From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston

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

Bulldogs win it all: With a dominant late burst, Georgia dethrones Alabama for its first national title since 1980.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 24, 2022

Why he might not be a jerk: Look, a coach getting really excited when his athlete wins gold and dethrones the world-record holder is not by itself definitive evidence of jerkdom.

From Slate ● Jul. 26, 2021

What a figure do all these highly gifted, many-sided, original characters play, when the blind passion for knowing and determining the future dethrones their powerful will and resolution!

From The Civilisation of the Renaissance in Italy by Jacob Burckhardt

Her arrival briefly dethroned Joe Rogan at the top of the Spotify chart, and the show continues to hit the top 10.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026

They have not been out of the top three of the Fifa world ranking since March 2022, and spent two years in the number one spot before being dethroned by France last year.

From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026

Texas has dethroned California as the state with the most Fortune 500 companies.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2026

Once Protestantism was dethroned, historians excavated almost every part of the nation’s spiritual landscape.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 19, 2026

I spent the rest of the day in shock, reeling at the news that I’d been dethroned.

From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline

Shelton, meanwhile, is coming off the biggest victory of his career, a madcap, wee-hours dethroning of defending champ Alcaraz which also went to a fifth-set tiebreak and ran all the way until 3:33 a.m.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 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

An act was passed, during this time, in obedience to the demands of the mob, dethroning the king.

From Maria Antoinette Makers of History by John S. C. (John Stevens Cabot) Abbott

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Related Words

• depose

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