To give up a position of power or responsibility, especially a king or queen giving up the throne.
From Latin *abdicare* meaning “to renounce, disown,” from *ab-* “away” and *dicare* “to proclaim, declare.” It originally meant formally declaring that you are giving something up.
We hear ‘abdicate’ with kings, but you can ‘abdicate responsibility’ in everyday life by just not doing what you’re supposed to do. The word quietly reminds us that not acting is also a kind of public announcement. You’re ‘declaring’ your duty gone—whether you say it out loud or not.
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