Secedes

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To formally separate from a political union or organization To disengage from a larger governing body or alliance established for mutual benefit To officially withdraw one's participation or membership from an overarching entity or federation
2. To formally end membership within a political group or alliance
3. To take official steps to leave a larger organization or union

Etymology: "Secedes" is the third-person singular present form of "secede", so the story belongs to the verb itself. That verb comes from Latin "secedere", built from "se-", meaning "apart", and "cedere", meaning "to go". Put together, the original sense is simply to go apart or withdraw from a place or group. The Latin root "cedere" is also the source of a large family of English words, such as "proceed", "concede", and "recede", all of which share the idea of moving in a direction. "Secede" keeps the literal picture of physically stepping away, and it was in that sense that the word first described people leaving a place. Its modern political meaning, of formally breaking away from a larger body, grew out of that core idea of withdrawal.

Synonyms: withdraws, detaches, breaks away, splits, separates

Antonyms: joins, unites, integrates, merges, connects