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relinquish

[ri-ling-kwish]
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verb (used with object)
  1. to renounce or surrender (a possession, right, etc.): to relinquish the throne.
  2. to give up; put aside or desist from: to relinquish a plan.
  3. to let go; release: to relinquish one's hold.
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Origin of relinquish

1425–75; late Middle English relinquissen, relinquisshen < Middle French relinquiss-, long stem of relinquir ≪ Latin relinquere to leave behind, equivalent to re- re- + linquere to leave (akin to lend)
Related formsre·lin·quish·er, nounre·lin·quish·ment, nounnon·re·lin·quish·ment, nounun·re·lin·quished, adjectiveun·re·lin·quish·ing, adjective

Synonyms

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2. yield, cede, waive, forego, abdicate, leave, quit, forswear, desert, resign. See abandon1.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for relinquish

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • But not for that did aunt Ann relinquish her quest for the betterment of the domestic world.

    Tiverton Tales

    Alice Brown

  • The term of your imprisonment ceases when you relinquish the hope of Beatriz.

    Calderon The Courtier

    Edward Bulwer-Lytton

  • Casanova promptly moved as if to relinquish his seat in the carriage.

    Casanova's Homecoming

    Arthur Schnitzler

  • Rather than relinquish her, however, he would have set Rome on fire.

  • I determined to relinquish every advantage to Grushnitski; I wanted to test him.

    A Hero of Our Time

    M. Y. Lermontov

British Dictionary definitions for relinquish

relinquish

verb (tr)
  1. to give up (a task, struggle, etc); abandon
  2. to surrender or renounce (a claim, right, etc)
  3. to release; let go
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Derived Formsrelinquisher, nounrelinquishment, noun

Word Origin

C15: from French relinquir, from Latin relinquere to leave behind, from re- + linquere to leave
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for relinquish

v.

mid-15c., "desert, abandon;" late 15c., "give up, desist," from Old French relinquiss-, present participle stem of relinquir (12c.), from Latin relinquere "leave behind, forsake, abandon, give up," from re- "back" (see re-) + linquere "to leave," from PIE *linkw-, from root *leikw- "to leave behind" (cf. Sanskrit reknas "inheritance, wealth," rinakti "leaves;" Greek leipein "to leave;" Gothic leihvan, Old English lænan "to lend;" Old High German lihan "to borrow;" Old Norse lan "loan"). Related: Relinquished; relinquishing.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper