escaped; escaping
1
a
: to get away (as by flight)
escaped from prison
b
: to issue from confinement
gas is escaping
c
of a plant
: to run wild from cultivation
2
: to avoid a threatening evil
the boat sank but the crew escaped
1
: to get free of : break away from
escape the jungle
escape the solar system
2
: to get or stay out of the way of : avoid
efforts to escape poverty
3
: to fail to be noticed or recallable by
his name escapes me
4
a
: to issue from
a smile escaped me
b
: to be uttered involuntarily by
a sigh of relief escaped her
escaper
noun
1
: an act or instance of escaping: such as
a
: flight from confinement
b
: evasion of something undesirable
c
: leakage or outflow especially of a fluid
d
: distraction or relief from routine or reality
2
: a means of escape
3
: a cultivated plant run wild
4
or less commonly Escape
: escape key
1
: providing a means of escape
escape literature
2
: providing a means of evading a regulation, claim, or commitment
an escape clause in a contract
Did you know?
If you were being held captive by someone gripping the coat or cloak you were wearing, you might be able to get away by slipping out of it. This is the idea on which the word escape is based. Escape is made up of the Latin prefix ex-, which means “out of,” and the Latin word cappa, which means “head covering” or “cloak.”
Synonyms
Examples of escape in a Sentence
Verb
They managed to escape from the burning building.
He needed a vacation to escape the routine of daily life.
She moved to the city to escape the memory of her mother's death.
trying to help people to escape poverty
trying to help people to escape from poverty
He succeeded in escaping punishment for many years.
A few passengers somehow escaped injury.
She barely escaped death when her car slid off the road.
Several passengers escaped without injury.
Noun
The prisoners attempted a daring escape.
He celebrated his escape from his boring job with a long vacation.
She had a lucky escape when she wasn't injured in the accident.
She managed to avoid serious injury, but it was a narrow escape.
The door was locked; there was no escape.
Gardening offered an escape from her busy life.
an accidental escape of poisonous gases
trying to prevent further escape of liquid
See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Dina Kaur, The Arizona Republic, 5 Jan. 2024
Justice officials rebuff the notion that corporate criminals escape punishment.
—Joe Davidson, Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2024
Money Mike fights back and uses pliers on Damon’s testicles to escape.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 4 Jan. 2024
Two floors above them, at 2:44 p.m., the first rioter reached the door Pence used to escape from the Senate.
—Sarah D. Wire, Los Angeles Times, 4 Jan. 2024
Gypsy, 32, says caused the disorder led her mother to mentally and physically abuse her, subjecting her to unnecessary medical procedures to the point where Gypsy felt killing Dee Dee was her only option to escape.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, Peoplemag, 4 Jan. 2024
Officials said the captain of the smaller plane was able to escape the crash and has regained consciousness.
—Danny Lee, Fortune, 2 Jan. 2024
The Colts benched Thomas, handing the reins to one of the most athletic players in the roster to play in single-high looks and offer the focus that at times escaped him as a rookie.
—Nate Atkins, The Indianapolis Star, 1 Jan. 2024
Sorry about your really scary dreams that could only be escaped by dying.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 29 Dec. 2023
Radhika Seth, Vogue, 6 Jan. 2024
The man was almost blind from being underground for so long and limped from being shot in the leg during an escape attempt.
—Katharine Houreld, Washington Post, 6 Jan. 2024
John Kuhn threw the second most famous block in Packers history, chipping a player who became a Packer three months later
The Bears elected to send a seven-man rush, and Kuhn slid in front of Rodgers and chipped Peppers just enough to give Rodgers an escape route.
—Journal Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2024
Terraced gardens will offer guests an escape from busy cobbled streets, and menus will feature produce from the property’s garden.
—Sarah Rappaport, Fortune Europe, 5 Jan. 2024
On Passover, families gather around the table to retell the story of the Jewish people's escape from Pharaoh's rule.
—Rebecca Angel Baer, Southern Living, 4 Jan. 2024
The escape, which was reported in The Wall Street Journal last spring, was only one of a series of recent incidents suggesting how much Russia’s intelligence forces have regrouped since the start of the war in Ukraine.
—Andrei Soldatov, Foreign Affairs, 27 Dec. 2023
Wake up to a warm light and chirping birds – a sweet escape from that jarring phone alarm.
—Cristian Esteban, Rolling Stone, 26 Dec. 2023
The fissure emerged about 3 km northeast of Grindavík, close to that ancient crater line, which suggested the magma found its escape through a zone of preexisting weakness in the crust.
—Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, 19 Dec. 2023
David G. Allan, CNN, 4 Aug. 2022
Both works draw a line between the anti-escape devices used to control the enslaved and the subtler constraints on contemporary Black dissent.
—Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 4 May 2022
If possible, collect the bat in an escape-proof container with air holes and take to a local veterinarian for euthanasia.
—Leada Gore | Lgore@al.com, al, 8 Mar. 2022
On Wednesday, the 40-year-old stunt performer shared an update on his health after he was hospitalized last week following an escape act gone wrong at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, where the show is being filmed.
—Karen Mizoguchi, PEOPLE.com, 20 Oct. 2021
Authorities searched around Stevenson Park but could not locate Tidwell, who will face additional escape charges, the sheriff’s office said.
—Howard Koplowitz | Hkoplowitz@al.com, al, 4 Dec. 2019
Another epic escape act seems improbable, but can't be ruled out if Di Francesco gets his tactics right in Rome.
—Stevens Griffiths, chicagotribune.com, 24 Apr. 2018
During his final three matches at the sectional, Skokna consistently employed a strategy of letting his opponent get escape points without trying to keep him down.
—Patrick Kelly, chicagotribune.com, 16 Feb. 2018
The Saturn 5, which flew 13 times, had an Earth-escape payload capacity of more than 100,000 pounds, about three times the capability of the Falcon Heavy.
—William Harwood, CBS News, 4 Feb. 2018
See More
Verb
Daedelus created wings for him and his son to use to escape.
—Dina Kaur, The Arizona Republic, 5 Jan. 2024
Justice officials rebuff the notion that corporate criminals escape punishment.
—Joe Davidson, Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2024
Money Mike fights back and uses pliers on Damon’s testicles to escape.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 4 Jan. 2024
Two floors above them, at 2:44 p.m., the first rioter reached the door Pence used to escape from the Senate.
—Sarah D. Wire, Los Angeles Times, 4 Jan. 2024
Gypsy, 32, says caused the disorder led her mother to mentally and physically abuse her, subjecting her to unnecessary medical procedures to the point where Gypsy felt killing Dee Dee was her only option to escape.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, Peoplemag, 4 Jan. 2024
Officials said the captain of the smaller plane was able to escape the crash and has regained consciousness.
—Danny Lee, Fortune, 2 Jan. 2024
The Colts benched Thomas, handing the reins to one of the most athletic players in the roster to play in single-high looks and offer the focus that at times escaped him as a rookie.
—Nate Atkins, The Indianapolis Star, 1 Jan. 2024
Sorry about your really scary dreams that could only be escaped by dying.
—Bethy Squires, Vulture, 29 Dec. 2023
Noun
Chronicling a girl’s escape from her troubled past, the film landed the Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize, too.
—Radhika Seth, Vogue, 6 Jan. 2024
The man was almost blind from being underground for so long and limped from being shot in the leg during an escape attempt.
—Katharine Houreld, Washington Post, 6 Jan. 2024
John Kuhn threw the second most famous block in Packers history, chipping a player who became a Packer three months later
The Bears elected to send a seven-man rush, and Kuhn slid in front of Rodgers and chipped Peppers just enough to give Rodgers an escape route.
—Journal Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2024
Terraced gardens will offer guests an escape from busy cobbled streets, and menus will feature produce from the property’s garden.
—Sarah Rappaport, Fortune Europe, 5 Jan. 2024
On Passover, families gather around the table to retell the story of the Jewish people's escape from Pharaoh's rule.
—Rebecca Angel Baer, Southern Living, 4 Jan. 2024
The escape, which was reported in The Wall Street Journal last spring, was only one of a series of recent incidents suggesting how much Russia’s intelligence forces have regrouped since the start of the war in Ukraine.
—Andrei Soldatov, Foreign Affairs, 27 Dec. 2023
Wake up to a warm light and chirping birds – a sweet escape from that jarring phone alarm.
—Cristian Esteban, Rolling Stone, 26 Dec. 2023
The fissure emerged about 3 km northeast of Grindavík, close to that ancient crater line, which suggested the magma found its escape through a zone of preexisting weakness in the crust.
—Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, 19 Dec. 2023
Adjective
One more benefit of recounting and recording your dreams is simply escape.
—David G. Allan, CNN, 4 Aug. 2022
Both works draw a line between the anti-escape devices used to control the enslaved and the subtler constraints on contemporary Black dissent.
—Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 4 May 2022
If possible, collect the bat in an escape-proof container with air holes and take to a local veterinarian for euthanasia.
—Leada Gore | Lgore@al.com, al, 8 Mar. 2022
On Wednesday, the 40-year-old stunt performer shared an update on his health after he was hospitalized last week following an escape act gone wrong at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, where the show is being filmed.
—Karen Mizoguchi, PEOPLE.com, 20 Oct. 2021
Authorities searched around Stevenson Park but could not locate Tidwell, who will face additional escape charges, the sheriff’s office said.
—Howard Koplowitz | Hkoplowitz@al.com, al, 4 Dec. 2019
Another epic escape act seems improbable, but can't be ruled out if Di Francesco gets his tactics right in Rome.
—Stevens Griffiths, chicagotribune.com, 24 Apr. 2018
During his final three matches at the sectional, Skokna consistently employed a strategy of letting his opponent get escape points without trying to keep him down.
—Patrick Kelly, chicagotribune.com, 16 Feb. 2018
The Saturn 5, which flew 13 times, had an Earth-escape payload capacity of more than 100,000 pounds, about three times the capability of the Falcon Heavy.
—William Harwood, CBS News, 4 Feb. 2018
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'escape.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English, from Anglo-French escaper, eschaper, from Vulgar Latin *excappare, from Latin ex- + Late Latin cappa head covering, cloak
First Known Use
Verb
13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Adjective
1817, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of escape was
in the 13th century
Phrases Containing escape
Articles Related to escape
Dictionary Entries Near escape
Cite this Entry
“Escape.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/escape. Accessed 10 Jan. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
escape
1 of 2 verb
es·cape
is-ˈkāp 
escaped; escaping
1
a
: to get away
escape from the daily routine
escape from a burning building
b
: to leak out from some enclosed place
gas is escaping
c
: to grow in the wild after being in cultivation
2
: to get out of the way of : avoid
escape punishment
3
: to fail to be noticed or recalled by
the name escapes me
4
: to come out from or be uttered by unexpectedly or almost uncontrollably
a sigh of relief escaped us
escaper
noun
escape
2 of 2 noun1
: an act or instance of escaping
2
: a means of escaping
3
: a cultivated plant growing wild
Etymology
Verb
early French escaper "to escape," from assumed Latin excappare (same meaning), from Latin ex- "out, out of" and cappa "head covering, cloak" — related to cape entry 2
Word Origin
If you were being held captive by someone gripping your coat or cloak, you might be able to get away by slipping out of it. The word escape is based on that idea. Escape comes from the Latin prefix ex-, which means "out of," and the Latin word cappa, which means "head covering" or "cloak."
Medical Definition
escape
1 of 3 verb
es·cape
is-ˈkāp
escaped; escaping
: to avoid or find relief from something by means of an escape
: to avoid or find relief from (something) by means of an escape
he was unable to escape reality
escape
2 of 3 noun
: an act or instance of escaping: as
a
: evasion of something undesirable
find no method of escape from pain and suffering
b
: distraction or relief from routine or reality
especially
: mental distraction or relief by flight into idealizing fantasy or fiction that serves to glorify the self
escape
3 of 3 adjective
: providing a means of escape
escape literature
Legal Definition
escape
1 of 2 intransitive verb
es·cape
escaped; escaping
: to depart from lawful custody with the intent of avoiding confinement or the administration of justice
escape
2 of 2 noun1
: an act or instance of escaping
2
: the criminal offense of escaping
More from Merriam-Webster on escape
Nglish: Translation of escape for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of escape for Arabic Speakers
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