abdicate
verb (used without object)
to renounce or relinquish a throne, right, power, claim, responsibility, or the like, especially in a formal manner.
abdicated
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past participleof abdicate.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
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past tense formof abdicate.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
abdicateverb (used without object)to renounce or relinquish a throne, right, power, claim, responsibility, or the like, especially in a formal manner.
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.
The plan is to invest in “everything our country has outsourced and abdicated over recent decades,” Combs says.
From Barron's ● Mar. 27, 2026
There is something quietly ironic about expecting municipal leaders to serve as democratic guardrails when we have collectively abdicated our own responsibility in even the simplest level of civic participation.
From Salon ● Jan. 24, 2026
Juan Carlos, who abdicated as Spanish king in 2014, hit by scandals, now living in Abu Dhabi, sent an irresistible royal Christmas card.
From BBC ● Dec. 22, 2025
Congress has abdicated many roles to the executive branch, but the Senate continues to guard closely its constitutional power of advise and consent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025
“You’ve just come from Erhenrang; what are they saying there about these rumors that Argaven has in fact abdicated without announcement, handed the sledge over to his cousin?”
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
