surrender

American  

[suh-ren-der] / səˈrɛn dər /

verb (used with object)

• surrenders,
  present (3rd person singular)
• surrendered,
  past participle,  past
• surrendering
  present participle

1. 

   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.

2. to give (oneself ) up, as to the police.

3. to give (oneself ) up to some influence, course, emotion, etc..

   He surrendered himself to a life of hardship.

4. to give up, abandon, or relinquish (comfort, hope, etc.).

   Synonyms:

   renounce

5. to yield or resign (an office, privilege, etc.) in favor of another.

   Synonyms:

   forgo, abandon, cede, waive

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verb (used without object)

• surrenders,
  present (3rd person singular)
• surrendered,
  past participle,  past
• surrendering
  present participle

1. to give oneself up, as into the power of another; submit or yield.

   Synonyms:

   capitulate

noun

• surrenders
  plural

1. the act or an instance of surrendering.

   Synonyms:

   relinquishment, capitulation

2. Insurance. the voluntary abandonment of a life-insurance policy by the owner for any of its nonforfeiture values.

3. the deed by which a legal surrendering is made.

surrender British  

/ səˈrɛndə /

verb

1. (tr) to relinquish to the control or possession of another under duress or on demand

   to surrender a city

2. (tr) to relinquish or forego (an office, position, etc), esp as a voluntary concession to another

   he surrendered his place to a lady

3. to give (oneself) up physically, as or as if to an enemy

4. to allow (oneself) to yield, as to a temptation, influence, etc

5. (tr) to give up (hope, etc)

6. (tr) law to give up or restore (an estate), esp to give up a lease before expiration of the term

7. obsolete (tr) to return or render (thanks, etc)

8. to present oneself at court at the appointed time after having been on bail

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noun

1. the act or instance of surrendering

2. insurance the voluntary discontinuation of a life policy by its holder in return for a consideration (the surrender value )

3. law

   1. the yielding up or restoring of an estate, esp the giving up of a lease before its term has expired

   2. the giving up to the appropriate authority of a fugitive from justice

   3. the act of surrendering or being surrendered to bail

   4. the deed by which a legal surrender is effected

Synonym Usage

See yield.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonsurrender
  noun
• presurrender
  noun
• surrenderer
  noun
• prosurrender
  adjective
• unsurrendered
  adjective
• unsurrendering
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• surrenders
  plural

Participles

• surrendering
  present
• surrendered
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• surrender
  simple
• surrenders
  simple
• have surrendered
  perfect
• has surrendered
  perfect
• am surrendering
  progressive
• are surrendering
  progressive
• is surrendering
  progressive
• have been surrendering
  perfect progressive
• has been surrendering
  perfect progressive

Past

• surrendered
  simple
• had surrendered
  perfect
• was surrendering
  progressive
• were surrendering
  progressive
• had been surrendering
  perfect progressive

Future

• will surrender
  simple
• will have surrendered
  perfect
• will be surrendering
  progressive
• will have been surrendering
  perfect progressive

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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

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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!"

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

surrender surrenders surrendered surrendering

There was a total £1.8m penalty for the "dilapidations" to Royal Lodge, but that has been reduced by the £300,000 Mountbatten-Windsor would have received for an early surrender of his lease.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

But we question why the parents must move to a high-cost area and surrender essentially all of their assets to finance a property that the older brother insists on owning and controlling.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026

Summoning the will to surrender that power he’d trained all his life to inherit, to the Guardians of the Universe ordering him to betray his friend, is a Herculean act.

From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026

After the Inter-Con guards secured their guns, they toured the building like they owned it, refusing either to answer questions or surrender Simpson’s key.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

Others feature ex-USAFFE soldiers trying to convince Filipino soldiers to surrender immediately.

From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly

Writing one big check surrenders that $2,000 in each of the four off years.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

A chairman who avoids discussing the outlook can’t explain the committee’s decisions and surrenders a tool for steering it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Rather than transcending expectations, “Dangerous Animals” surrenders to them.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2025

And it proceeds in an escalating cycle of tit-for-tat moves until one of the parties involved surrenders.

From Salon ● May 20, 2025

Berlin surrenders; Goring surrenders; the great mysterious vault of Nazism falls open.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

Rooney and Myha'la surrendered theirs, but traitor Jama managed to hold on to hers.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Lefty Tanner Scott, whom Roberts plans to use in a fireman role, surrendered a two-run homer to Ozzie Albies in the ninth.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

What diners surrendered wasn’t necessarily quality so much as a little hospitality, a little transparency and, increasingly, the expectation that a restaurant represented somebody’s particular idea of what a restaurant should be.

From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026

Bear surrendered his collar in March after a decade of being a very good boy as one of the first dogs in the country to be trained to detect the scent of koala fur.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

I could have told him all that, could have surrendered the weight, let the relationship carry it and grow stronger.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

She can become a mother without surrendering her career.

From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2026

After surrendering 28 first-half points, JSerra held Bishop Amat, and running back Justin Clinton, who rushed for more than 130 yards, including a 67-yard burst and a 43-yard touchdown, in check in the second half.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

Alcaraz edged the opener on a tie-break - but only after surrendering his advantage after breaking for a seemingly decisive 6-5 lead.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 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

Give up Hope, and I will know that you are surrendering.

From "The Last Olympian" by Rick Riordan

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Related Words

• abandon
• capitulate
• cede
• commit
• concede
• give in
• hand over
• leave
• quit
• relinquish
• renounce
• submit
• succumb
• waive
• yield

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