noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   The act of disowning or disinheriting a child. countable, obsolete, uncountable
2. 2
   the act of abdicating wordnet
3. 3
   The act of abdicating; the renunciation of a high office, dignity, or trust, by its holder. countable, uncountable
4. 4
   a formal resignation and renunciation of powers wordnet
5. 5
   The voluntary renunciation of sovereign power. countable, uncountable

   "abdication of the throne, government, power, authority"

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6. 6
   The renunciation of interest in a property or a legal claim; abandonment. countable, obsolete, uncountable
7. 7
   The action of being deposed from the seat of power. countable, obsolete, uncountable

Synonyms

All synonyms

abandonmentabjurationabjurementcessiondemissiondeposal

Example

More examples

"The abdication of Napoleon Bonaparte occurred in 1814."

Etymology

First attested in 1552. From Latin abdicātiō (“renunciation”), from abdicō. By surface analysis, abdicate + -ion.

Related phrases

give upleaving thronesurrendering throne

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.