acquiesce
Americanverb (used without object)
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acquiesces,
present (3rd person singular)
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acquiesced,
past participle, past
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acquiescing
present participle
verb
Usage
The use of to after acquiesce was formerly regarded as incorrect, but is now acceptable
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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acquiescencenoun
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acquiescentadjective
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nonacquiescingadjective
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acquiescentlyadverb
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acquiescinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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acquiescesimple
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acquiescessimple
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have acquiescedperfect
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has acquiescedperfect
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am acquiescingprogressive
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are acquiescingprogressive
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is acquiescingprogressive
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have been acquiescingperfect progressive
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has been acquiescingperfect progressive
Past
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acquiescedsimple
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had acquiescedperfect
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was acquiescingprogressive
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were acquiescingprogressive
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had been acquiescingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of acquiesce
First recorded in 1610–20; from Latin acquiēscere “to find rest in, ” equivalent to ac- ac- + quiē- + -sc- inchoative suffix + -ere infinitive suffix
Explanation
To acquiesce is to agree to something or to give in. If your kid sister is refusing to hand over the television remote, you hope she acquiesces before your favorite show comes on. The verb acquiesce comes from the Latin word acquiescere, meaning “to rest.” If you “rest” or become passive in the face of something to which you object, you are giving tacit agreement. In other words, you acquiesce. If you want to go hiking with your family and your children are not interested, it will be a very tough day on the trail until they acquiesce.
Vocabulary lists containing acquiesce
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The Declaration of Independence
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
You are saying your paycheck goes into bitcoin first, rather than being spent on unnecessary purchases, but will acquiesce when you need a new car.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
I’d rather be called a prude than acquiesce to society’s slow drift into vice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
Though he’s been asked to try to neutralize his accent in English, he’s not eager to acquiesce.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026
"You will be the same person that will castigate us if we acquiesce to accepting Venezuelan prisoners into Nigeria," he added.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2025
“If you do not acquiesce, others will. We will And someone who will support this repair. We will take our business elsewhere.”
From "Feed" by M.T. Anderson
You say everyone acquiesces to the older brother.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
The officer quickly acquiesces and tells the staffer to “close the door.”
From Salon ● Jan. 28, 2026
He will hope the new leader acquiesces to his plea to be allowed to remain in the job until next May.
From BBC ● Jan. 2, 2026
Initially, Ingrid resists, fearful that she lacks the emotional fortitude to be there for Martha, but once she acquiesces, they grow closer during their bittersweet getaway.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 6, 2025
History ratifies the conclusion, and the common sense of mankind practically acquiesces in it.
From The Moral and Intellectual Diversity of Races With Particular Reference to Their Respective Influence in the Civil and Political History of Mankind by T. S. (Timothy Shay) Arthur
He wanted to avoid the mistakes he thought prosecutors had made, chief among them, in his view: They were so eager to show Blake’s motive that they acquiesced to the harsh portrayal of the victim.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Moscow acquiesced to the Chinese yuan to be the primary currency for a planned regional-development bank covering Central Asia, known as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Development Bank.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
He made a case to your grandmother to reduce your inheritance to 10% from one-third and she acquiesced.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026
The Motion Picture Association and the U.S. ambassador to Canada had pressed the country to change the policy, and the government acquiesced late Wednesday.
From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026
Sergeant Maples acquiesced to the inevitable and did combat with the defendant that afternoon.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
You did not fall in line, and your brother was rewarded for acquiescing, even if he did have his own agenda.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026
Big banks have already been acquiescing to Musk’s unusual demands, including paying up front for Grok subscriptions, thus juicing SpaceX’s flagging A.I. revenue.
From Slate ● May 15, 2026
And pushed back again when the team insisted and said where to do it, saying: "I'll tell you when we're going to swap" before eventually acquiescing.
From BBC ● Mar. 23, 2025
UCLA, Washington, Sacramento State and UC Davis offered spots as a walk-on, finally acquiescing to Moayed’s passionate pitch.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2024
By acquiescing in an act that can cause such suffering to a living creature, who among us is not diminished as a human being?
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
