1
as in indulging
to give (oneself) over to something especially unrestrainedly
more than ready to abandon himself to a life of complete idleness for the duration of his vacation
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in leaving
to cause to remain behind
abandoned the group that he had been hiking with and struck out on his own
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in canceling
to put an end to (something planned or previously agreed to)
the bad weather forced NASA to abandon the launch
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in discontinuing
to stop doing (something) permanently
marriage customs that were abandoned decades ago
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of abandoning
Because of insecurity in eastern Congo, many people are abandoning the few available roads for wooden vessels crumbling under the weight of passengers and their goods.
—
ABC News, 8 Apr. 2026
Iran has not said anything about such a joint effort or committed publicly to abandoning uranium enrichment under the conditional ceasefire agreement.
—CBS News, 8 Apr. 2026
The resulting algorithm introduced several key innovations, including starting routes from dense clusters of items and flexibly abandoning inefficient routes to improve overall system performance.
—Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 7 Apr. 2026
Jumping in nightly is the fastest way to end up with peeling, redness and frustration — and then abandoning the product altogether.
—Miami Herald, 7 Apr. 2026
Some planners argue for abandoning the low-lying neighborhoods that used to be ponds, creeks, and marshes.
—Eric Klinenberg, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026
What followed was a multi-cut spectacle that had the broadcast team abandoning the action on the field to narrate her every move.
—Samantha Agate, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Apr. 2026
But more residents in these cities are abandoning their lawns altogether, replacing them with native grasses or shrubs.
—Ella Nilsen, CNN Money, 6 Apr. 2026
Californians are abandoning the Golden State, chiefly because of high housing costs and finding better luck at becoming homeowners elsewhere, a new study found.
—Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 1 Apr. 2026
ABC News, 8 Apr. 2026
Iran has not said anything about such a joint effort or committed publicly to abandoning uranium enrichment under the conditional ceasefire agreement.
—CBS News, 8 Apr. 2026
The resulting algorithm introduced several key innovations, including starting routes from dense clusters of items and flexibly abandoning inefficient routes to improve overall system performance.
—Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 7 Apr. 2026
Jumping in nightly is the fastest way to end up with peeling, redness and frustration — and then abandoning the product altogether.
—Miami Herald, 7 Apr. 2026
Some planners argue for abandoning the low-lying neighborhoods that used to be ponds, creeks, and marshes.
—Eric Klinenberg, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026
What followed was a multi-cut spectacle that had the broadcast team abandoning the action on the field to narrate her every move.
—Samantha Agate, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Apr. 2026
But more residents in these cities are abandoning their lawns altogether, replacing them with native grasses or shrubs.
—Ella Nilsen, CNN Money, 6 Apr. 2026
Californians are abandoning the Golden State, chiefly because of high housing costs and finding better luck at becoming homeowners elsewhere, a new study found.
—Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 1 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abandoning
Verb
-
The elder Junod gave off mixed messages, abusing his long-suffering wife while indulging his gifted son.—
Hamilton Cain,
Time,
3 Mar. 2026
-
There’s a conversation for Nebraska worth indulging this spring.—
Mitch Sherman,
New York Times,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Then about an hour prior to tipoff, he was deemed out, leaving the backup point guard duties mostly to rookie Sion James.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Already, the department is overburdened, leaving the responsibility for handling many attacks by wolves and other predators to local law enforcement, said David Bess, a retired chief of CDFW’s enforcement division.—
Sharon Bernstein,
Sacbee.com,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
How about canceling the election altogether, as the king has suggested?—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Fuel shortages are keeping doctors and nurses away from work and hospitals are canceling surgeries and delaying vaccines for children and life-saving treatments such as kidney dialysis and radiation therapy.—
Mark Weisbrot,
Mercury News,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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RevMed in a statement said the majority of rash cases have been low grade, with no patients discontinuing treatment because of it.—
Angelica Peebles,
CNBC,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Samsung is discontinuing the app in July 2026.—
Jibin Joseph,
PC Magazine,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Tyler Unter threw five scoreless innings before surrendering a pair of runs in the sixth for Santa Margarita.—
Michael Huntley,
Oc Register,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Murakami’s two walks came against Jacob Misiorowski, who struck out 11 while surrendering one run — a leadoff home run by Chase Meidroth — on two hits in five innings.—
LaMond Pope,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
If bigger and better opportunities come along, striking while the iron is hot is a logical course of action, even when moves sometimes appear to make more sense for financial reasons than footballing ones and forsaking the comfort of operating in a stable environment.—
Andy Naylor,
New York Times,
30 Mar. 2026
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But that doesn’t mean forsaking the forecast and the threat of more dipping temperatures to come.—
Patricia Shannon,
Southern Living,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his government are not completely scrapping the plan to hand the islands to Mauritius.—
Issy Ronald,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 2026
-
The uncertainty over the closure of more than 500 schools is creating headaches for parents concerned about finding child care or scrapping test prep.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
But later that month, after several employees talked about quitting, the plan was abandoned.—
Ronan Farrow,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
The partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security — which funds and oversees TSA — led to hundreds of TSA officers quitting nationwide, while others used sick time.—
Kyle Burton,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Abandoning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abandoning. Accessed 15 Apr. 2026.
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