concede
Americanverb (used with object)
-
concedes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
conceded,
past participle, past
-
conceding
present participle
-
to acknowledge as true, just, or proper; admit.
He finally conceded that she was right.
- Synonyms:
- grant
- Antonyms:
- deny
-
to acknowledge (an opponent's victory, score, etc.) before it is officially established.
to concede an election before all the votes are counted.
-
to grant as a right or privilege; yield.
to concede a longer vacation for all employees.
- Antonyms:
- refuse
verb (used without object)
-
concedes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
conceded,
past participle, past
-
conceding
present participle
verb
-
(when tr, may take a clause as object) to admit or acknowledge (something) as true or correct
-
to yield or allow (something, such as a right)
-
(tr) to admit as certain in outcome
to concede an election
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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concedernoun
-
preconcedeverb (used with object)
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concessibleadjective
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unconcedingadjective
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concededlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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concedesimple
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concedessimple
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have concededperfect
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has concededperfect
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am concedingprogressive
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are concedingprogressive
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is concedingprogressive
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have been concedingperfect progressive
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has been concedingperfect progressive
Past
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concededsimple
-
had concededperfect
-
was concedingprogressive
-
were concedingprogressive
-
had been concedingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of concede
First recorded in 1625–35; from Latin concēdere, equivalent to con- con- + cēdere “to withdraw, yield”; see cede
Explanation
If you concede something, you admit that it is true, proper, or certain — usually in an unwilling way and often in the context of a competition, as in "At midnight, the candidate finally conceded defeat." In its most common senses, a near synonym of concede is acknowledge — if your mom is pointing out that you need sleep before the test, you should concede the truth of what she's saying. But another meaning of concede is to give away or grant something, as when an unpopular leader is unwilling to concede power. Concede is from Latin concēdere, from the prefix com-, "completely," plus cēdere, "to go along, grant, yield." The corresponding noun is concession.
Vocabulary lists containing concede
List 1
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"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 1–6
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Touching Spirit Bear
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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:
"They were good strikes, but as a goalkeeper, I'm always disappointed when I concede a goal," Gunn acknowledged after facing the Swiss.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
The Romanian filmmaker’s stoic drama is designed to provoke viewers in opposite directions, snaring them in waiting traps and causing them to concede in agony, “You have a point!”
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
The closer Tottenham went to scoring the more it seemed likely they would concede.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
Even many of those creating artificial intelligence now concede they can’t say with any degree of certainty that they know what it is doing, why it is doing it or if it is safe.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2026
At some late hour, Mitt Romney called to concede.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
Carrick concedes the game still has niche appeal in Scotland.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
He concedes that he “kind of went crazy for a little while” in snapping up shoes, owns hundreds of pairs, and it has become a bit of an issue at his Manhattan Beach home.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
"Burnham is a more formidable opponent," concedes Tim Montgomerie.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Even the abolitionist Death Penalty Information Center concedes that “there is no way to tell how many of the … people executed since 1976 may … have been innocent.”
From Slate ● Aug. 13, 2026
“I’m not one hundred percent consistent about everything,” he concedes.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Fréchette conceded her own re-election race in Trois-Rivières shortly before 22:00 local time.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
In his latest interview with Axios Sunday, Bessent backtracked and conceded, “I can’t control the bond market.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026
But a far from successful start at his new club - where he has conceded 23 goals in 11 games - has continued into international duty.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
Women are recruited to wash away the mud to reveal the nuggets of the precious metal, conceded Jacqueline Djangone, the head of the village women's association.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
“Forty seconds on a six and a half hour flight. Not so bad,” Lenina conceded.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
It was a defensive masterclass and they delivered Bompastor's gameplan perfectly, capping off victory with a third successive clean sheet - a run of 315 minutes without conceding a goal.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
Yet it is the lack of goals Liverpool are conceding that really deserves highlighting.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
The German had won all five of their previous matchups, on three different surfaces, while conceding just one set.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
He is happy to call ChatGPT intelligent without conceding that it is conscious: How could it be, when it has no feelings, no central nervous system?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
When I persisted in my carping to the economists, they generally backed down a bit, conceding that while wages at the bottom are going up, they’re not going up very briskly.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
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.
