Link Centre Dictionary

absent

ab·sent

UK/æbˈsɛnt/ US/æbˈsɛnt/ fairly common
adjective (2) verb (1)

adjective

1.
2.

lost in thought; showing preoccupation

  • “an absent stare”
  • “an absentminded professer”
  • “the scatty glancing quality of a hyperactive but unfocused intelligence”
Synonyms
Similar

verb

1.

go away or leave

  • “He absented himself”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English absent, from Middle French absent, from Old French ausent, and their source, Latin absens, present participle of absum (“to be away from”), from ab (“away”) + sum (“to be”).

Phrases

  • absent over leave
  • absent referent
  • absent treatment
  • absent voter
  • absent without leave
  • in absentia

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

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.