abdicate
[ ab-di-keyt ]
verb (used without object),ab·di·cat·ed, ab·di·cat·ing.
to renounce or relinquish a throne, right, power, claim, responsibility, or the like, especially in a formal manner: The aging founder of the firm decided to abdicate.
verb (used with object),ab·di·cat·ed, ab·di·cat·ing.
to give up or renounce (authority, duties, an office, etc.), especially in a voluntary, public, or formal manner: King Edward VIII of England abdicated the throne in 1936.
Origin of abdicate
1First recorded in 1535–45; from Latin abdicāt(us) “renounced,” past participle of abdicāre “to renounce,” from ab- ab- + dicāre “to indicate, consecrate”
Other words for abdicate
Other words from abdicate
- ab·di·ca·ble [ab-di-kuh-buhl], /ˈæb dɪ kə bəl/, adjective
- ab·di·ca·tive [ab-di-key-tiv, -kuh-], /ˈæb dɪˌkeɪ tɪv, -kə-/, adjective
- ab·di·ca·tor, noun
- non·ab·di·ca·tive, adjective
- un·ab·di·cat·ed, adjective
- un·ab·di·cat·ing, adjective
- un·ab·di·ca·tive, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for abdicate
abdicate
/ (ˈæbdɪˌkeɪt) /
verb
to renounce (a throne, power, responsibility, rights, etc), esp formally
Origin of abdicate
1C16: from the past participle of Latin abdicāre to proclaim away, disclaim
Derived forms of abdicate
- abdicable (ˈæbdɪkəbəl), adjective
- abdication, noun
- abdicative (æbˈdɪkətɪv), adjective
- abdicator, noun
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
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