Words / C2

yoo-ZURP/juːˈzɜːp/

To usurp is to seize a role or power without right: usurp the chair, usurp authority. Seize and take over are everyday; depose is throw a ruler out. Usurpation is the noun. User is a lookalike only at a glance. Do not usurp a biscuit from a plate in this register — that is take.

Meaning

To take someone’s power, role, or place without the right to do so.

Examples

• “A working group must not usurp the elected board.”
• “A working party must not usurp the elected board’s vote.”
• “History books usurp thrones; offices usurp agendas. Both need the “no right” sense.”

Good to know

Seize a role/power without right. Noun: usurpation. Everyday: take over. Mix-up: user. Snacks: take, not usurp.

New