Capitulate and its synonyms yield, submit, and succumb all mean to give way to someone or something, but have a few slight differences in emphasis. Yield may apply to any sort or degree of bowing to force, debate, or pleading (“yields too easily in any argument”). Submit suggests surrender, after resistance, to the will or control of another (“the soldiers submitted to their captors”). Succumb imputes weakness and helplessness to the person giving in, or an overwhelming power to the opposition (“succumbing to temptation”). Capitulate stresses the termination of all resistance and may imply either a coming to terms, as with an adversary, or hopelessness before an irresistible opposing force (“team owners capitulated to the demands of the players’ union”).

Examples

“Real estate experts say retailers are increasingly looking to pay rent as a percentage of sales, making it a variable expense on their balance sheets rather than a fixed one.… While there could be some hesitation to strike a deal like this, landlords could end up capitulating to keep a space occupied.” — Lauren Thomas, CNBC.com, 24 Sept. 2020

“And remember, Rivera didn’t draft Haskins last year. His predecessor, Jay Gruden, didn’t want to, either, but capitulated to owner Daniel Snyder.” — Steve DeShazo, The Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Virginia), 8 Oct. 2020