secede
Americanverb (used without object)
-
secedes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
seceded,
past participle, past
-
seceding
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
secedesimple
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secedessimple
-
have secededperfect
-
has secededperfect
-
am secedingprogressive
-
are secedingprogressive
-
is secedingprogressive
-
have been secedingperfect progressive
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has been secedingperfect progressive
Past
-
secededsimple
-
had secededperfect
-
was secedingprogressive
-
were secedingprogressive
-
had been secedingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of secede
First recorded in 1695–1705, secede is from the Latin word sēcēdere to withdraw. See se-, cede
Explanation
To secede is to go your own way, breaking off ties. Usually, this refers to one part of a country that wants to become independent, like the South during the U.S. Civil War. The Latin word secedere means “go apart” and that's where secede comes from. Don't confuse it with the much more common succeed. Your plan to secede from the state of New Jersey and found a kingdom named Rusty, after your dog, is not likely to succeed.
Vocabulary lists containing secede
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
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The American Civil War
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100 SAT words Beginning with "S"
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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:
The issue was caught up in a mayoral campaign and a 2001 ballot measure calling for the Valley to secede from the city.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 14, 2024
Decades ago, her optical nerve had begun to secede from the lining of her left eye.
From Slate ● Jan. 27, 2024
Sikh Americans have wide-ranging opinions on whether Sikhs should secede from India.
From New York Times ● Dec. 5, 2023
The post, which opens with sentences mirroring the Declaration of Independence, makes clear that the proposal is to secede from California and become an independent U.S. state rather than secede from the United States.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 17, 2023
It retains the right to secede at will.
From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck
Either Virginia secedes from the union, something that did not work out so well 150 years ago.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 4, 2017
If Scotland secedes, the UK itself could be the next to change what it calls itself.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 30, 2016
By a popular referendum attended by some 80 percent of eligible state voters, Maloney’s Texas secedes on April 1, 2013.
From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2013
It is a countdown to January 9th, the day a referendum is scheduled to decide whether the southern part of this country secedes from the north and becomes its own nation.
From New York Times ● Dec. 9, 2010
Louisiana, La Salle in; extent of; French in; struggle for; Spanish; purchased; admitted; boundary; secedes; reconstructs government; readmitted.
From A School History of the United States by John Bach McMaster
In 1860, though, an election nearly destroyed the nation when Abraham Lincoln became president and, in response, seven Southern states seceded from the Union.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Texas became a U.S. state in 1845 and seceded from the union to join the Confederacy at the start of the Civil War.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2026
Eritrea officially seceded from Ethiopia in 1993 - but later fought a deadly border war.
From BBC ● Feb. 25, 2026
In December, Israel became the first to recognise Somaliland's independence since it seceded from Somalia in 1991, drawing angry condemnation from the federal government in Mogadishu, even though it has been self-governing for 35 years.
From Barron's ● Feb. 25, 2026
As other states seceded, the number of stars was increased to thirteen.
From "Lincoln's Last Days: The Shocking Assassination that Changed America Forever" by Bill O'Reilly
A handful of townspeople now mutter about seceding from the local council area, echoing a widening harrumph of displeasure with the various layers of government in Britain.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
South Sudan is an oil-rich nation that became the world's newest country in 2011 after seceding from Sudan.
From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2025
“Texas has talked about seceding for a long time,” Ms. Haley said.
From New York Times ● Feb. 4, 2024
A Latin inscription on the monument cites the Confederacy’s “Lost Cause” rationale for seceding.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 14, 2022
“Secession means the Southerners are breaking away, or seceding, from our present Union of thirty-three states to form their own confederacy of sorts.”
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
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.
