To surrender, forfeit, or yield one's control or possession of something to someone or some group or organization. A noun or pronoun can be used between "relinquish" and "to." The land that I relinquished to my younger brother is now worth nearly $2 million for the oil deposits beneath it. They're making me relinquish the house to the bank because my ex-husband didn't keep up the mortgage payments. She refused to relinquish control over the company to someone who wasn't in the family.