to go away hastily and secretly; run away and hide, esp. in order to escape the law
Origin of abscond
Classical Latin abscondere from ab(s)-, from, away + condere, to hide: see recondite
verb
The definition of abscond means to leave secretly and quickly.
An example of abscond would be a prisoner escaping from jail.
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abscond. (n.d.). Retrieved October 13th, 2018, from http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND
abscond
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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"abscond." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 October 2018. <http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND>.
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abscond. (n.d.). Retrieved October 13th, 2018, from http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND
abscond
intransitive verb
ab·scond·ed, ab·scond·ing, ab·scondsTo leave quickly and secretly and hide oneself, often to avoid arrest or prosecution.
Origin of abscond
Latin abscondere to hide abs-, ab- away ; see ab- 1. condere to put ; see dhē- in Indo-European roots.Related Forms:
- ab·scond′er
noun
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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MLA Style
"abscond." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 October 2018. <http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND>.
APA Style
abscond. (n.d.). Retrieved October 13th, 2018, from http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND
Verb
(third-person singular simple present absconds, present participle absconding, simple past and past participle absconded)
- (intransitive, reflexive, archaic) To hide, to be in hiding or concealment.
- (intransitive, reflexive) To flee, often secretly; to steal away, particularly to avoid arrest or prosecution. [From mid 16th century.]
- (intransitive) To withdraw from. [From mid 16th century.]
- 1684, John Esquemeling, Henry Powell, The Buccaneers of America, published 2010, page 161:
- They examined every prisoner by himself (who were in all about two hundred and fifty persons) where they had absconded the rest of their goods
- To evade, to hide or flee from.
- The captain absconded his responsibility
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
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"abscond." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 October 2018. <http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND>.
APA Style
abscond. (n.d.). Retrieved October 13th, 2018, from http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND
abscond - Legal Definition
v
- To secretly or suddenly leave a place or to go into hiding, especially to avoid arrest, prosecution, the service of a summons or other legal process, or an action by a creditor.
- To leave a location, often in a hurry, with money or property of another.
Webster's New World Law Dictionary Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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MLA Style
"abscond." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 October 2018. <http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND>.
APA Style
abscond. (n.d.). Retrieved October 13th, 2018, from http://www.yourdictionary.com/abSCOND
Sentence Examples
- But the governor of Syria had sent a demand for Herod's acquittal, and so Hyrcanus adjourned the trial and persuaded the accused to abscond.