capitulate

verb

ca·pit·u·late kə-ˈpi-chə-ˌlāt

capitulated; capitulating

Synonyms of capitulate next

intransitive verb

: to surrender often after negotiation of terms

The enemy was forced to capitulate unconditionally.

: to cease resisting : acquiesce

The company capitulated to the labor union to avoid a strike.

archaic : parley, negotiate

Did you know?

We hope you’ll acquiesce to some history about capitulate because we can’t resist. When it first entered English in the 16th century, capitulate meant “to discuss terms with an enemy; to negotiate.” Its Latin source is more bookshelf than battlefield: the Medieval Latin word capitulare means “to distinguish [text] by chapters or headings,” as well as “to stipulate in an agreement.” The original “negotiate” sense of capitulate is now rarely heard, and today capitulate typically stresses surrender, whether to agreed-upon terms or in hopelessness before an irresistible opposing force (as in “team owners capitulated to the demands of the players’ union”).

Choose the Right Synonym for capitulate

yield, submit, capitulate, succumb, relent, defer mean to give way to someone or something that one can no longer resist.

yield may apply to any sort or degree of giving way before force, argument, persuasion, or entreaty.

yields too easily in any argument

submit suggests full surrendering after resistance or conflict to the will or control of another.

a repentant sinner vowing to submit to the will of God

capitulate stresses the fact of ending all resistance and may imply either a coming to terms (as with an adversary) or hopelessness in the face of an irresistible opposing force.

officials capitulated to the protesters' demands

succumb implies weakness and helplessness to the one that gives way or an overwhelming power to the opposing force.

a stage actor succumbing to the lure of Hollywood

relent implies a yielding through pity or mercy by one who holds the upper hand.

finally relented and let the children stay up late

defer implies a voluntary yielding or submitting out of respect or reverence for or deference and affection toward another.

I defer to your expertise in these matters

Examples of capitulate in a Sentence

The country still refuses to capitulate despite its weakening army and dwindling resources. The teacher refused to capitulate: no calculators were to be used during the exam.

Recent Examples on the Web

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.

Several analysts raised their price targets and Morgan Stanley capitulated on its sell rating and upgraded the stock. —

Brian Evans, CNBC, 4 Feb. 2025 This is a rape, Breillat shows us, carried out not by physical force but by calculation, aided by a social architecture that encourages the girl to capitulate to him. —

Victoria Uren, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025 Even as Bud Light capitulated and tried to walk back the ad spot, consumers revolted and the brand lost more than $1 billion in sales in the year that followed. —

Allison Morrow, CNN, 25 Jan. 2025 Although Hamas repeatedly declined to agree to the framework of this ceasefire agreement that President Biden announced in May of 2024, the unyielding and ironclad alliance between the United States and Israel ultimately persuaded Hamas to capitulate. —

Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 15 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for capitulate