surrender

[suh-ren-der]

verb (used with object)

1. to yield (something) to the possession or power of another; deliver up possession of on demand or under duress.

   to surrender the fort to the enemy; to surrender the stolen goods to the police.

2. to give (oneself ) up, as to the police.

3. to give (oneself ) up to some influence, course, emotion, etc..

   He surrendered himself to a life of hardship.

4. to give up, abandon, or relinquish (comfort, hope, etc.).

   Synonyms: renounce

5. to yield or resign (an office, privilege, etc.) in favor of another.

   Synonyms: forgo, abandon, cede, waive

verb (used without object)

1. to give oneself up, as into the power of another; submit or yield.

   Synonyms: capitulate

noun

1. the act or an instance of surrendering.

   Synonyms: relinquishment, capitulation

2. Insurance.,  the voluntary abandonment of a life-insurance policy by the owner for any of its nonforfeiture values.

3. the deed by which a legal surrendering is made.

surrender

/ səˈrɛndə /

verb

1. (tr) to relinquish to the control or possession of another under duress or on demand

   to surrender a city

2. (tr) to relinquish or forego (an office, position, etc), esp as a voluntary concession to another

   he surrendered his place to a lady

3. to give (oneself) up physically, as or as if to an enemy

4. to allow (oneself) to yield, as to a temptation, influence, etc

5. (tr) to give up (hope, etc)

6. (tr) law to give up or restore (an estate), esp to give up a lease before expiration of the term

7. obsolete,  (tr) to return or render (thanks, etc)

8. to present oneself at court at the appointed time after having been on bail

noun

1. the act or instance of surrendering

2. insurance the voluntary discontinuation of a life policy by its holder in return for a consideration (the surrender value )

3. law

   1. the yielding up or restoring of an estate, esp the giving up of a lease before its term has expired

   2. the giving up to the appropriate authority of a fugitive from justice

   3. the act of surrendering or being surrendered to bail

   4. the deed by which a legal surrender is effected

Other Word Forms

• surrenderer noun
• nonsurrender noun
• presurrender noun
• prosurrender adjective
• unsurrendered adjective
• unsurrendering adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of surrender¹

First recorded in 1425–75; (for the verb) late Middle English surrendren, from Anglo-French surrender, Old French surrendre “to give up,” from sur- sur- ¹ + rendre “to render” ( render ¹ ); (for the noun) from Anglo-French; Old French surrendre, noun use of the infinitive

Word History and Origins

Origin of surrender¹

C15: from Old French surrendre to yield, from _sur- ¹ + rendre to _render

Synonym Study

See yield.

Example Sentences

Nearly 60,000 blades have been either "seized or surrendered" in England and Wales as part of government efforts to halve knife crime within a decade, the interior ministry said Wednesday.

Read more on Barron's

Congressional Democrats, as the “adults in the room,” will inevitably surrender to the GOP for what they view as the greater good.

Read more on Salon

Mr. Roberts called Heritage the “intellectual backbone of the conservative movement,” but there will be no conservative movement if the right’s key institutions surrender to dog-whistling and resentment.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Negotiations to surrender the fort ended with its officers brutally lynched.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The Lakota chief Sitting Bull and his starving band of followers ended nearly two decades of intermittent warfare with the United States on July 20, 1881, when they surrendered at Fort Buford, in Dakota Territory.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• abandon 
• capitulate 
• cede 
• commit 
• concede 
• give in 
• hand over 
• leave 
• quit 
• relinquish 
• renounce 
• submit 
• succumb 
• waive 
• yield