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Politics & Government vocabulary · Political News Vocabulary

Step down

Meaning in politics & government, with examples

phrasal verbCore term

In politics & government, step down means: To leave an important position, especially a leading one, often in a planned way rather than by being forced out.

In Turkish: görevi bırakmak, görevden çekilmek, koltuğu bırakmak

How it is used

Very common in news headlines: a leader steps down as party chair or steps down from a post. It sounds softer and more neutral than resign. British English also uses stand down, especially for candidates and MPs who decide not to stand again.

Example sentences

  1. The party leader announced that she would step down after the next election.

  2. He stepped down as chair of the committee to spend more time with his family.

Common collocations

  • step down as leader
  • step down from
  • agree to step down
  • announce plans to step down
  • resignTo leave a job or official position by your own decision, usually by formally telling the people you work for.
  • term of officeThe fixed period of time during which an elected or appointed person, such as a president, mayor or MP, holds an official position.
  • reshuffleA change in which a prime minister or president moves ministers to different jobs, removes some of them and brings new people into the cabinet.
  • incumbentThe person who currently holds an official position, especially one who is standing for election again against new candidates.

More terms: Political News Vocabulary

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