1
as in relinquished
to give (something) over to the control or possession of another usually under duress
she reluctantly ceded her position as leader
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in transferred
to give over the legal possession or ownership of
Spain ceded Puerto Rico to the United States as part of the settlement of the Spanish-American War
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in abdicated
to give up (as a position of authority) formally
the President officially cedes his position on the January 20th immediately following the presidential election
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ceded
For example, Congress has routinely failed to pass an annual budget on time and instead relies on continuing resolutions, has ceded its war powers responsibilities and has conducted insufficient oversight of the executive branch.
—
Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026
Leavitt quickly ceded the mic to Colin Jost‘s Pete Hegseth.
—William Earl, Variety, 3 May 2026
But if the entire area was ceded back to the District of Columbia, the electoral advantage in the new districts would be dulled and new districts would be drawn in light of the state’s shrunken footprint.
—Jesse Bedayn, Twin Cities, 23 Apr. 2026
At the institute, McMahon ceded policy to others.
—Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
London’s Victoria and Albert Museum ceded to censorship requests issued by the Chinese firm that prints the institution’s exhibition catalogues, according to a new report from The Guardian, who unearthed the information via FOIA requests.
—News Desk, Artforum, 16 Apr. 2026
In past eras, aldermen ceded to mayors the choices for Zoning and other committee chairs.
—Jake Sheridan, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026
In such a scenario, if Democrats ceded the floor, Republicans could pass the measure with 51 votes.
—Sudiksha Kochi, The Hill, 13 Apr. 2026
With control ceded to the computer clock, the drummer is left filling in the spaces like a kid with a coloring book, straining against the tyranny of the click track in their ears.
—Philip Sherburne, Pitchfork, 13 Apr. 2026
Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2026
Leavitt quickly ceded the mic to Colin Jost‘s Pete Hegseth.
—William Earl, Variety, 3 May 2026
But if the entire area was ceded back to the District of Columbia, the electoral advantage in the new districts would be dulled and new districts would be drawn in light of the state’s shrunken footprint.
—Jesse Bedayn, Twin Cities, 23 Apr. 2026
At the institute, McMahon ceded policy to others.
—Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
London’s Victoria and Albert Museum ceded to censorship requests issued by the Chinese firm that prints the institution’s exhibition catalogues, according to a new report from The Guardian, who unearthed the information via FOIA requests.
—News Desk, Artforum, 16 Apr. 2026
In past eras, aldermen ceded to mayors the choices for Zoning and other committee chairs.
—Jake Sheridan, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026
In such a scenario, if Democrats ceded the floor, Republicans could pass the measure with 51 votes.
—Sudiksha Kochi, The Hill, 13 Apr. 2026
With control ceded to the computer clock, the drummer is left filling in the spaces like a kid with a coloring book, straining against the tyranny of the click track in their ears.
—Philip Sherburne, Pitchfork, 13 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ceded
Verb
-
There are outs not to be relinquished on the bases.—
Gabriel Burns,
AJC.com,
15 May 2026
-
Aries held the title for 298 days beginning in September 2011 and only relinquished it to get a shot at the TNA World Championship.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
14 May 2026
Verb
-
She was recently ruled incompetent to stand trial in her son's murder and is awaiting to be transferred to a state hospital.—
Briauna Brown,
CBS News,
14 May 2026
-
Named after musician Bob Marley, the cat was transferred to the zoo from a rehabilitation center in Wisconsin.—
Gloria Casas,
Chicago Tribune,
14 May 2026
Verb
-
Congress has abdicated its power to an oligarchy of billionaires.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
13 May 2026
-
Congress has already abdicated its duty.—
Lucas Robinson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 May 2026
Verb
-
With two outs already recorded in the inning, Rodón surrendered a double to Carson Benge before issuing walks to Bo Bichette and Juan Soto.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
17 May 2026
-
Cubs starter Jameson Taillon surrendered all five long balls.—
LaMond Pope,
Chicago Tribune,
17 May 2026
Verb
-
But Shaw remained, feet planted a yard and a half in front of Ouahabi, the West Ham defender assigned the duty of marking Shaw ostensibly having found something better to do than bare witness to this stand-off.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
-
According to the New York Times, she was assigned to an RC-135 reconnaissance airplane crew.—
Peter D'Abrosca,
FOXNews.com,
17 May 2026
Verb
-
Yesterday, one of his previously closest allies, Health Secretary Wes Streeting, resigned with a blistering broadside.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
15 May 2026
-
Wes Streeting, originally seen as the potential frontrunner to replace Starmer, resigned from his role as health secretary on Thursday but stopped short of launching his own leadership challenge.—
Joseph Wilkins,
CNBC,
15 May 2026
Verb
-
Depicting the Norman conquest of England 1100 years ago, the Bayeux tapestry is an astonishing 230 feet long and, according to the British Museum, features 58 scenes, each rendered in colored wool embroidery on flax.—
Anne Doran,
ARTnews.com,
14 May 2026
-
The pieces are emblazoned with the Mschf and Vicenza signs rendered in sunflower yellow, as well as logos of partners and sponsors, including Diesel.—
Martino Carrera,
Footwear News,
14 May 2026
Verb
-
One version of the nation’s history anchors itself in the efforts to navigate those tempests, to better the imperfect tools bequeathed to us by imperfect men.—
Jelani Cobb,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
Among the additions to the AKG holdings in that time was the estate of Marisol, a Pop artist who bequeathed it to the museum upon her death in 2016; the museum organized an acclaimed traveling retrospective of her art that first opened in 2023 and landed at the museum the following year.—
Alex Greenberger,
ARTnews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ceded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ceded. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
