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If someone abdicates, they give up their responsibility for something, such as a king’s transfer of power when he gives up his throne.
If you abjure a belief or a way of behaving, you state publicly that you will give it up or reject it.
Your abnegation of something is your giving up your rights or claim to it, even though it might not be in your best interest to do so.
If you appropriate something that does not belong to you, you take it for yourself without the right to do so.
When you arrogate something, such as a position or privilege, you take it even though you don’t have the legal right to it.
Avarice is the extremely strong desire to have a lot of money and possessions.
If you expropriate something, you take it away for your own use although it does not belong to you; governments frequently expropriate private land to use for public purposes.
When you extricate yourself from a difficult or unpleasant situation, you manage to escape it.
If you recant, you publicly announce that your once firmly held beliefs or statements were wrong and that you no longer agree with them.
If governments, companies, or other institutions retrench, they reduce costs and/or decrease the amount that they spend in order to save money.
When something is scuttled, it is done away with or discarded.
When you usurp someone else’s power, position, or role, you take it from them although you do not have the right to do so.
Verb
jettison
JET-uh-suhn
Context
Due to the formality of his sister’s wedding, Fred decided to get rid of or jettison his favorite purple tennis shoes and wear his shiny dress shoes instead. Likewise, Fred jettisoned or discarded his plan of bringing along his spiky-haired, loud, and rather beastly girlfriend. Fred decided to jettison or cast aside his views against marriage as well for his sister’s special day.
Quiz:Try again!
What does it mean to jettison something?
To replace something that might be found offensive.
To remove it because someone else thinks you should.
To throw it away or reject it, even if temporarily.
Jettison Madison "Oh my god! I couldn't believe how much Madison would complain and complain and complain! And we were all stuck with her sailing across the Atlantic Ocean in a small slow boat! Finally we had to jettison Madison--good riddance!"
Examples
Some of his lieutenants were urging him to jettison his urgent new campaign to uplift the poor, believing that King had taken on too much and was compromising support for the civil rights struggle.
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Newsvine
Perhaps this year, those of us filled with seasonal anxiety ought to inventory what we like and dislike about holiday routines — jettison those that weigh us down and focus only on the ones that bring joy and meaning.
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USA Today
The mayor’s aides, anxious to jettison the controversy and repair the mayor’s image, plan a blitzkrieg of appearances and announcements in the coming weeks to show that Villaraigosa is focused on his job.
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Los Angeles Times
Kevin Wall, an Emmy-winning concert producer who produced Live 8 and founded Live Earth, hopes Live Earth will change attitudes about global warming and jettison a larger movement.
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The Washington Post
To jettison something is to “throw” or “cast” it away.
Word Theater
Knight Rider Kitt suggests that they jettison the bomb into the stratosphere so that its radiation does minimal damage.
The panel shows a small video clip of either the word in actual use or a scene that represents the meaning of a word. This not only breaks up the monotony of studying words but also provides another avenue to strengthen word meaning. Enjoy!