1
Give up a right
Choose not to exercise a legal entitlement.
Example
Participants may waive their right to anonymity.
waive
/weɪv/ · WAYVverb
To voluntarily give up a right, claim, requirement, or privilege.
Use waive when the context supports this precise sense: to voluntarily give up a right, claim, requirement, or privilege.
What waive Really Means
The word becomes easier to use when its closely related senses are separated and compared.
2
Remove a requirement
Officially excuse someone from a rule or fee.
Example
The university waived the application fee.
3
Forgo a claim
Relinquish a demand or objection.
Example
By signing, the tenant did not waive future claims.
Use waive Naturally
Notice how the surrounding noun or clause reveals the exact shade of meaning.
Participants may waive their right to anonymity.
The university waived the application fee.
By signing, the tenant did not waive future claims.
Precision Matters
Waive overlaps with several common words, but each carries a different emphasis.
waive
vs.Means to voluntarily give up a right, claim, requirement, or privilege.
concede
Means to admit that a claim is true or valid, often reluctantly.
waive
vs.Means to voluntarily give up a right, claim, requirement, or privilege.
renounce
Means formally give up, reject, or abandon something.
waive
vs.Means to voluntarily give up a right, claim, requirement, or privilege.
relinquish
Means voluntarily give up possession, control, or a claim.
waive
vs.Means to voluntarily give up a right, claim, requirement, or privilege.
assert
Means to state or defend a claim confidently and directly.
Test waive in Context
The institution formally removes a requirement that it controls.
1
To encourage applications from low-income students, the college agreed to ___ the usual processing fee.