Link Centre Dictionary

abandon

aban·don

UK/əˈban.dən/ US/əˈbæn.dən/ common
verb (5) noun (2)

verb

1.

forsake, leave behind

  • “We abandoned the old car in the empty parking lot”
2.

stop maintaining or insisting on; of ideas, claims, etc.

  • “He abandoned the thought of asking for her hand in marriage”
  • “Both sides have to give up some calims in these negociations”
Synonyms
3.

give up with the intent of never claiming again

  • “Abandon your life to God”
  • “She gave up her children to her ex-husband when she moved to Tahiti”
  • “We gave the drowning victim up for dead”
Synonyms
4.

leave behind empty; move out of

  • “You must vacate your office by tonight”
Synonyms
5.

leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch

  • “The mother deserted her children”
Synonyms

noun

1.

the trait of lacking restraint or control; freedom from inhibition or worry

  • “she danced with abandon”
Synonyms
2.

a feeling of extreme emotional intensity

  • “the wildness of his anger”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English abandounen, from Old French abandoner, formed from a (“at, to”) + bandon (“jurisdiction, control”), from Late Latin bannum (“proclamation”), bannus, bandum, from Frankish *ban, *bann, from Proto-Germanic *bannaną (“to proclaim, command”) (whence English ban), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- (“to speak”).

Phrases

  • abandon hope, all ye who enter here
  • abandon ship
  • all hope abandon ye who enter here

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.