resign

American  

[ri-zahyn] / rɪˈzaɪn /

verb (used without object)

• resigns,
  present (3rd person singular)
• resigned,
  past participle,  past
• resigning
  present participle

1. to give up an office or position, often formally (often followed byfrom ).

   to resign from the presidency.

   Synonyms:

   withdraw

2. to submit; yield.

   to resign before the inevitable.

---

verb (used with object)

• resigns,
  present (3rd person singular)
• resigned,
  past participle,  past
• resigning
  present participle

1. to give up (an office, position, etc.), often formally.

   Synonyms:

   leave, quit, renounce, abdicate

2. to relinquish (a right, claim, agreement, etc.).

   Synonyms:

   cede, surrender, give up, forgo

3. to give or sign over, as to the control or care of another.

   She resigned her child to an adoption agency.

4. to submit (oneself, one's mind, etc.) without resistance.

resign British  

/ rɪˈzaɪn /

verb

1. to give up tenure of (a job, office, etc)

2. (tr) to reconcile (oneself) to; yield

   to resign oneself to death

3. (tr) to give up (a right, claim, etc); relinquish

   he resigned his claim to the throne

---

Usage

What does resign mean? Resign most commonly means to give up one’s job or position. When used this way, resign can be used without an object, as in He resigned yesterday, or with one, as in She is expected to resign her position. In its general sense, resign means to yield or submit, as in When he knew he couldn’t possibly win the match, he decided to resign. Example: They say he resigned on his own, but I think he was forced out.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• resigner
  noun

Inflected Forms

Participles

• resigning
  present
• resigned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• resign
  simple
• resigns
  simple
• have resigned
  perfect
• has resigned
  perfect
• am resigning
  progressive
• are resigning
  progressive
• is resigning
  progressive
• have been resigning
  perfect progressive
• has been resigning
  perfect progressive

Past

• resigned
  simple
• had resigned
  perfect
• was resigning
  progressive
• were resigning
  progressive
• had been resigning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will resign
  simple
• will have resigned
  perfect
• will be resigning
  progressive
• will have been resigning
  perfect progressive

---

Etymology

Origin of resign

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English resignen, from Middle French resigner, from Latin resignāre “to open, release, cancel,” literally, “to seal back,” from re- re- + signāre “to mark, seal” ( see sign)

---

Explanation

To resign is to quit or retire from a position. You can also resign yourself to something inevitable, like death — meaning you just accept that it's going to happen. When people resign, they're leaving something, like a job or political office. Congressmen resign after a scandal. Coaches resign after a really terrible season. Regular folks simply resign when they're ready to go. In those cases, resign is a nicer way of saying quit. Being resigned is another sense of this word — it's a type of acceptance. If your team is losing 80-20, you might as well resign yourself to losing. That just means you aren't in denial.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

resign resigns resigned resigning

ITV has reported that on Monday evening he had "mutually agreed" to resign from Reform UK, citing "personal reasons," and would be continuing as an independent councillor.

From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026

The answer to this inquiry would be because leaders of his own party informed Nixon that he would be removed from office if he didn’t resign.

From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2026

Then again, the silliest thing our species could do is resign ourselves to disaster.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026

First elected president in 2017 and re-elected in May 2022, Vucic cut short his five-year term to campaign for prime minister, although the law did not require him to resign.

From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026

Dr. Barnes also reminded Mr. Larson that, if he wished, he could choose to resign.

From "The Landry News" by Andrew Clements

CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke welcomed Wangchuk's decision to end his hunger strike but said the movement would press ahead with its campaign until the education minister resigns.

From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026

He resigns as leader and then has his membership suspended by the party.

From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026

If the sitting governor dies, resigns or is removed from office, the lieutenant governor would assume the role.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026

By the time someone resigns, the real conversation is already six months overdue.

From MarketWatch ● May 27, 2026

Flavius badly wants to use his own trademark purple lipstick on me but resigns himself to a pink as they begin to color my face and nails.

From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins

South Africa's deputy police chief has resigned three weeks after he was charged with sexual offences.

From BBC ● Oct. 12, 2026

Last month, another senior counsel, Kurt Olsen, who had joined the probe from the White House, resigned from the inquiry, people familiar with the matter said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

Joe diGenova resigned as a supervisor of the probe, saying department officials pressured the team to bring criminal cases before they were ready.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

Over the last decade, Cruise has resigned himself to action stardom, writing death-defying stunts into his contracts.

From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026

His marriage was now fast approaching, and she was at length so far resigned as to think it inevitable, and even repeatedly to say, in an ill-natured tone, that she “wished they might be happy.”

From "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen

The prime minister has ruled out resigning, promising to "listen, address legitimate concerns and keep Albania moving forward".

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

The head of the Tennessee Department of Correction is resigning following the botched execution earlier this week of a woman convicted of murder, the governor’s office said Saturday.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

But the Fair Games Coalition claims she responded to their requests to meet and discuss their concerns by resigning.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026

She made further allegations about a "group chat going wild" and said she had been "thinking about resigning for quite a long time".

From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026

To satisfy Spanish legal requirements, Orellana made a show of resigning his temporary command rather than leave Gonzalo.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---