surrender
Americanverb (used with object)
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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.
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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)
noun
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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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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:
Pausing such operations long enough to reassess protocols was not surrender.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Other research has pointed the same way, highlighting what has come to be called "cognitive offloading" -- or even "cognitive surrender".
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
Schiaparelli's creative director Daniel Roseberry's haute couture collection for Autumn/Winter 2026-2027 was entitled The Call of the Void, which he says was "a total surrender to an unknown creative process".
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
Instead, it has relied on character, restraint, discerning judgment and a capacity to distinguish between compromise and moral surrender.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
Before the akrafena can finish him off, Tano raises his hands in surrender and yells: “COOL DOWN!”
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
But last December’s decision to license H200 sales surrenders that lead.
From MarketWatch ● May 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
This astonishing show of might among the Allies is the beginning of the end for Germany and Japan, though a year will pass before there are any more surrenders.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Dodgers starting pitcher Eric Lauer, who had already given up a two-run home run to Alec Bohm in the first inning, surrendered a solo shot to Bryan De La Cruz to lead off the fifth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
In Popular Constitutionalism, Kramer describes this tradition as one that “we seem to have lost, or surrendered, today.”
From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2026
Despite being fit enough to play, the Arsenal winger remained an unused substitute as Thomas Tuchel's side surrendered a 1-0 lead in the closing stages to lose 2-1 to holders Argentina.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
He has surrendered the intellectual high ground of the conservative movement.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
“When Japan surrendered, we had a block party that went on for a week,” Minna remembered.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
England famously found itself on the wrong side of World Cup history at Azteca Stadium, surrendering Diego Maradona’s iconic “Hand of God” goal and another strike known as the tournament’s “most beautiful goal.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 4, 2026
In contrast, Ulysses S. Grant illustrates a more-challenging leadership path, namely reconciliation without surrendering principle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 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
The broader market cheered the sharp retreat in oil prices, with crude surrendering most of the gains triggered by the Iran war and approaching prewar levels.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 22, 2026
Adam waves his hand, surrendering to the nurse, to Kim.
From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman
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.
