What does "resignation" mean?

1. (leaving a job) the act of officially telling your employer that you are leaving your job. 2. (a formal letter) a formal letter or document that says you are leaving your job. 3. (accepting the inevitable) the feeling that you must accept something difficult or sad because you cannot change it. 4. (legal land return) an old legal way of returning land to a superior person in the past.

How do you use "resignation"?

Often used with the verbs 'hand in', 'tender', or 'submit'.

resignation

US //ˌɹɛzəɡˈneɪʃən// UK //ɹɪzɪɡnˈeɪʃən// res·ig·na·tion

1 leaving a job (n.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

the act of officially telling your employer that you are leaving your job.

the formal act of giving up or quitting a position, office, or employment.

Example

The manager handed in his resignation after finding a better job in another city.

Example

Following the scandal, the board of directors demanded the immediate resignation of the chief executive to restore public confidence in the firm.

Usage

Often used with the verbs 'hand in', 'tender', or 'submit'.
- appointment
- hiring
2 a formal letter (n.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

a formal letter or document that says you are leaving your job.

a written or oral notification stating that one is resigning from a post.

Example

She spent the afternoon writing her letter of resignation.

Example

The official's resignation was brief and professional, offering no specific reasons for his sudden departure from the ministry.
- notice

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3 accepting the inevitable (n.)
C1 Advanced Formal

the feeling that you must accept something difficult or sad because you cannot change it.

a state of quiet, uncomplaining endurance or submission to an unpleasant but unavoidable situation.

Example

He sighed with resignation when he saw the long line at the airport.

Example

There was a sense of weary resignation in her voice as she acknowledged that the project would never receive the necessary funding.

Teacher's tip

This sense describes a psychological state; it is often paired with verbs like 'sigh' or 'shrug'.
- resistance
- defiance
4 legal land return (n.)
C2 Proficiency Archaic Technical Law

an old legal way of returning land to a superior person in the past.

the formal act by which a vassal returns a land holding into the hands of a superior.

Example

The ancient document recorded the resignation of the lands to the crown.

Example

The historian examined the records of resignation to understand how land ownership shifted during the feudal period.
- surrender

Origin

From Middle English resignacion, resignacioun, from Old French resignation, from Medieval Latin resignātiōnem, accusative of resignātio. Equivalent to resign + -ation.