abduction

noun

ab·​duc·​tion ab-ˈdək-shən 

əb-

1

: the action of abducting : the condition of being abducted

2

archaic : the unlawful carrying away of a woman for marriage or sexual intercourse

Synonyms

• hijacking
• highjacking
• kidnapping
• kidnaping
• rape
• snatch [slang]

Examples of abduction in a Sentence

discredited reports of abductions by aliens

Recent Examples on the Web

The prank, initially targeting multiple players, ultimately involved the abduction of one of them, who was tied up and stuffed in a trunk with a pillowcase over his head, authorities said. —Shimon Prokupecz, CNN Money, 1 May 2025

New pieces of the Holly Bobo murder case will come to light in a new true crime podcast that looks back at the 2011 abduction and killing of the Tennessee nursing student. —Sean Neumann, People.com, 29 Apr. 2025

Six days after the abduction, Tolleson's body was discovered in a field near a creek. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Apr. 2025

That October, Néstor died of a heart ailment, and the next month Bergoglio was called to testify in front of a panel of judges about the abduction, more than thirty years earlier, of the Jesuit priests. —Graciela Mochkofsky, New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Late Latin abdūctiōn-, abdūctiō "withdrawal, removal, allurement," from Latin abdūcere "to lead away" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of action nouns — more at abduct

First Known Use

1632, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for abduction

• adduction
• conduction
• construction
• deduction
• destruction
• eduction
• induction
• instruction
• obstruction
• production
• reduction
• seduction

Legal Definition

abduction

noun

ab·​duc·​tion ab-ˈdək-shən, əb- 

1

a

: the action of abducting

abduction of a robbery victim

b

: the tort or felony of abducting a person

2

: the unlawful carrying away of a wife or female child or ward for the purpose of marriage or sexual intercourse

Note: Sense 2 has its roots in common law. As statutorily defined, mainly in the nineteenth century, abduction was generally stated to include taking away or detention of a woman under a certain age, usually 16 or 18, with or without her consent or knowledge of her age.