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
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
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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 correct: You will get pulled under financially, spiritually and emotionally if you continue to acquiesce to his demands or play host to his decades-long pity parties.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 3, 2026
Amodei said on Thursday he would rather stop working with the Pentagon than acquiesce to such threats.
From BBC ● Feb. 27, 2026
The social compact that endured since that trauma was that Iranians would acquiesce to hardship and restrictions in return for a strong state that protects them from foreign attack.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 12, 2026
There are no doubt plenty who will acquiesce to their demands.
From Salon ● Jan. 1, 2026
They are deceiv’d that acquiesce to things which they have heard, and believe not what they have seen.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
So the girl acquiesces and, in the next episode, we watch the dentist go to work on Evans’ mouth.
From Salon ● Feb. 20, 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
“Their relationship is interesting, because the second that Olivia is around her big sister in person, she actually acquiesces to her,” Olagundoye says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2024
When Haider acquiesces to his dad’s expectations — he finds a job, and his wife is forced out of hers — the entire home’s stability comes tumbling down.
From New York Times ● Apr. 6, 2023
Wotan acquiesces, smothered by this horrible, yet so clear, necessity.
From The Wagnerian Romances by Gertrude Hall Brownell
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
Grohl also had an ideal music-taste mentor in her father, who told his eldest all about Björk and acquiesced to playing Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab” on repeat.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026
It has just acquiesced to the status quo until it can decide.
From Slate ● May 5, 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 could forgive sellers who end up acquiescing and agreeing to the “old” rates, in the hope that they ultimately get a higher price for their home.
From MarketWatch ● May 19, 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
Although Red Bull had already decided to ditch Perez, he was reluctant to leave and his management sought the best possible compensation agreement before acquiescing.
From BBC ● Dec. 18, 2024
Sewell said he felt Andrew’s self-image was “dependent on the other party acquiescing to the idea that he is the prince.”
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 1, 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
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
