Prince Harry wants to Abdicate…
News reports are using the word “ABDICATE” for Prince Harry wanting to cut back on Royal Duties. Such as this:
Is abdicate the right word? or is it only for the Queen or King?
My first reaction was that the word is wrong in that instance, but… I had to check it.
To abdicate is normally considered to be “the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority.”
But, another meaning is: Abdication is the formal act of stepping down from something, especially “a king giving up the throne”. Note that it says especially, but NOT, only.
So, it seems that it can be any form of relinquishing some form of responsibility.
Abdicating is therefore a FORMAL act of stopping doing something.
The origin of the word is “to declare” from Latin. So Harry can declare that he will no longer act in Royal Duties, and by doing so, he abdicates that responsibility.
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