1
as in succumbing
to cease resistance (as to another's arguments, demands, or control)
encouraged her to stand firm and not knuckle under to political pressure
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in surrendering
to yield to the control or power of enemy forces
the remote outpost was overrun and forced to knuckle under
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knuckling under
Verb
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The Boys – Season 5 (Prime Video) Things have gone from bad to worse in the final season of The Boys, Prime Video’s irreverent superhero satire about America succumbing to charismatic despots and fascistic opportunists.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2026 -
Ace Hunter Brown made two starts before succumbing to a shoulder strain and closer Josh Hader has not thrown a pitch in the majors this season.—
Matt Kawahara,
Houston Chronicle,
7 May 2026
Verb
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The journalist turns his attention to Oda Sotatsu, a man who has admitted to a string of disappearances but refuses to speak another word after surrendering to police.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
19 May 2026
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Considered one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, Gable won two NCAA titles at Iowa State University and took gold at the 1972 Munich Olympics, without surrendering a single point across six matches.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
18 May 2026
Verb
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Multiple organizations have taken issue with the proposal, writing letters and submitting petitions to city officials opposing it.—
Kate Perez,
Chicago Tribune,
23 May 2026
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But the measure doesn’t prevent search committees from submitting a single name as a finalist, essentially moving the entire search process behind closed doors.—
Gray Rohrer,
Sun Sentinel,
22 May 2026
Verb
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Soto had the only two hits of the night for the Mets against Peréz (3-6), who retired eight straight after giving up the home run.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
23 May 2026
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Dye returns as the supe Bombsight, who appeared in Season 5 and briefly battled Soldier Boy before giving up his super strength and immortality caused by the V1 serum.—
Jordan Moreau,
Variety,
22 May 2026
Verb
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Deborah pecks her before reluctantly giving in to more passionate smooches.—
Erin Jensen,
USA Today,
8 May 2026
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Council member Abbie Kamin, one of three members who had pushed for the ordinance, voted against amending it, saying that doing so was giving in to bullying tactics from state leaders.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Eddie Howe’s side have also had a habit of switching off late, conceding a league-high 20 goals in the final 15 minutes this season.—
Sukhman Singh,
New York Times,
16 May 2026
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In the pain and promise of conceding to the fact that so much is still possible for this world and its people, no matter how grim the prognosis.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
15 May 2026
Verb
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An inspector can identify visible cracking, uneven floors, sticking doors and windows, and signs of bowing walls.—
Ryan Brennan
May 15,
Charlotte Observer,
15 May 2026
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The storms are expected to organize into clusters, and bowing segments later in the evening will take on more of a wind than hail threat, the weather service said.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
4 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Knuckling under.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knuckling%20under. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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