take a powder
idiomatic phrase
US, informal + somewhat old-fashioned
: to leave hurriedly
It is the players and incoming recruits who are most affected when a coach abruptly takes a powder.—
Jack McCallum
Jack McCallumThe beavers put up with this, Fair explains, until the surrounding population reached 250 families, and then the beavers took a powder.—Gregory Jaynes
Gregory JaynesThis is the worst extinction phase the planet has experienced since dinosaurs took a powder about 65 million years ago.—The Lompoc (California) Record
The Lompoc (California) RecordExamples of take a powder in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Getting the benefits of whey protein can mean taking a powder daily or close to it, and that can be costly.
—Melissa Nieves, Verywell Health, 20 June 2024
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Melissa Nieves, Verywell Health, 20 June 2024
Cite this Entry
“Take a powder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take%20a%20powder. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
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