surrender
Americanverb (used with object)
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surrenders,
present (3rd person singular)
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surrendered,
past participle, past
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surrendering
present participle
-
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.
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to give (oneself ) up, as to the police.
-
to give (oneself ) up to some influence, course, emotion, etc..
He surrendered himself to a life of hardship.
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to give up, abandon, or relinquish (comfort, hope, etc.).
- Synonyms:
- renounce
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to yield or resign (an office, privilege, etc.) in favor of another.
verb (used without object)
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surrenders,
present (3rd person singular)
-
surrendered,
past participle, past
-
surrendering
present participle
noun
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surrenders
plural
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the act or an instance of surrendering.
- Synonyms:
- relinquishment, capitulation
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Insurance. the voluntary abandonment of a life-insurance policy by the owner for any of its nonforfeiture values.
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the deed by which a legal surrendering is made.
verb
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(tr) to relinquish to the control or possession of another under duress or on demand
to surrender a city
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(tr) to relinquish or forego (an office, position, etc), esp as a voluntary concession to another
he surrendered his place to a lady
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to give (oneself) up physically, as or as if to an enemy
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to allow (oneself) to yield, as to a temptation, influence, etc
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(tr) to give up (hope, etc)
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(tr) law to give up or restore (an estate), esp to give up a lease before expiration of the term
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obsolete (tr) to return or render (thanks, etc)
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to present oneself at court at the appointed time after having been on bail
noun
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the act or instance of surrendering
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insurance the voluntary discontinuation of a life policy by its holder in return for a consideration (the surrender value )
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law
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the yielding up or restoring of an estate, esp the giving up of a lease before its term has expired
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the giving up to the appropriate authority of a fugitive from justice
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the act of surrendering or being surrendered to bail
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the deed by which a legal surrender is effected
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Synonym Usage
See yield.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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nonsurrendernoun
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presurrendernoun
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surrenderernoun
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prosurrenderadjective
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unsurrenderedadjective
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unsurrenderingadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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surrendersimple
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surrenderssimple
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have surrenderedperfect
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has surrenderedperfect
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am surrenderingprogressive
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are surrenderingprogressive
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is surrenderingprogressive
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have been surrenderingperfect progressive
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has been surrenderingperfect progressive
Past
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surrenderedsimple
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had surrenderedperfect
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was surrenderingprogressive
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were surrenderingprogressive
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had been surrenderingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of surrender
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” ( see render 1); (for the noun) from Anglo-French; Old French surrendre, noun use of the infinitive
Explanation
To surrender is to give up control of something to someone else. If you miss curfew, your parents might make you surrender the keys to the car. Okay, it's only a minivan, but it's still cooler than being on foot patrol. If you want someone to give up, you might order them to surrender. The witch in the Wizard of Oz wrote "Surrender Dorothy!" in the sky above the Emerald City. You can use the noun surrender when you give up on a task. For example, if you are cleaning the house, but every time you finish a room, the kids mess up another, you can throw your hands up and declare, "I surrender!"
Vocabulary lists containing surrender
Workshop 4, Part 1
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Revolver
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First They Killed My Father
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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:
Legal scholars have debated whether surrogates should pay legal damages if they fail to honor a contractual abortion provision, surrender payments remaining on the contract, or even pay back money they already received.
From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026
The Sheriff’s Department dispatched a team of specialized crisis negotiators who attempted to negotiate his surrender, but the man refused to exit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
Japan occupied all of Korea before its 1945 surrender in the Second World War, after which the peninsula was divided into separate states along the 38th parallel.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
The findings led Canvey Island Town Council to surrender its lease of the lake to Castle Point Borough Council.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
Grady raises both hands in a gesture of surrender.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
Writing one big check surrenders that $2,000 in each of the four off years.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026
District Judge Margaret Garnett released Van Dyke while he awaits trial, on conditions including that he surrenders his passport and any firearms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
Rather than transcending expectations, “Dangerous Animals” surrenders to them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2025
Harket, 65, said he had "no problem accepting the diagnosis", adding: "With time, I've taken to heart my 94-year-old father's attitude to the way the organism gradually surrenders: 'I use whatever works'."
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2025
Poland surrenders, and trains filled with victorious German troops receive a jubilant homecoming.
From "The Boy Who Dared" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Their defense surrendered five touchdowns, including an 83-yard punt return.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
In his exit, Kubasik surrendered $58 million worth of unvested stock and severance payments that would have been worth about $9 million, according to data-provider Equilar.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Arthur Andersen surrendered its CPA license, effectively putting the firm out of business in 2002, although the Supreme Court later overturned the conviction.
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2026
Samarth initially could not be located but later surrendered to police.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
She accepted with pride the pencil the monitor passed out to her in the morning and reluctantly surrendered it to another monitor at three o’clock.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
He worked two innings against Team USA’s star-studded lineup without surrendering a hit, retiring the likes of Alex Bregman, Cal Raleigh and Pete Crow-Armstrong.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
They included General Dietrich von Choltitz, the last Nazi commander in Paris, who arrived in late August 1944 after defying Hitler and surrendering the city.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
If every click to enable an app or service amounted to surrendering Fourth Amendment protection, constitutional privacy would steadily evaporate as technology became more sophisticated.
From Slate ● Jun. 29, 2026
Except Ilicali appears to have played his hand a little early, surrendering some of his bargaining power by openly admitting a clock is ticking.
From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026
When he turned back to Alec, the man had stood, holding his hands up as if surrendering.
From "The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin)" by James Dashner
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.
