as in to kidnap
to carry away (as a person) forcibly or unlawfully
the gangsters planned to abduct the industrialist's young daughter and demand a huge ransom from her family
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Recent Examples of abduct
Now, a sinister witch (Sarah Stephens) who bathes her broomstick in the woods tortures their existence, abducting their infant and leaving the family in shambles.
—
Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Oct. 2025
Police released a composite sketch and a more detailed description of a man being sought for trying to abduct an 11-year-old girl on her way to school last week.
—Harry Harris, Mercury News, 29 Oct. 2025
The film begins six years after the end of Halloween 5, with Michael and Jamie being abducted by a cult.
—Jessica Sager, PEOPLE, 24 Oct. 2025
An example from Meta shows an edit where someone is put into a dinosaur outfit and appears to be abducted by a UFO.
—PC Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abduct
Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Oct. 2025
Police released a composite sketch and a more detailed description of a man being sought for trying to abduct an 11-year-old girl on her way to school last week.
—Harry Harris, Mercury News, 29 Oct. 2025
The film begins six years after the end of Halloween 5, with Michael and Jamie being abducted by a cult.
—Jessica Sager, PEOPLE, 24 Oct. 2025
An example from Meta shows an edit where someone is put into a dinosaur outfit and appears to be abducted by a UFO.
—PC Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abduct
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abduct
kidnap
Verb
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Emma Stone plays Michelle Fuller, the powerful leader of pharmaceutical company Auxolith, who gets kidnapped by Teddy (Jesse Plemons), a conspiracy theorist convinced Michelle is really an Andromedan — an extraterrestrial sent to Earth to destroy it.—
EW Staff,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
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In 2021, the most recent year for which there’s data, more than 800,000 Filipinos were kidnapped by the gangs who dominate this trade in the South Pacific.—
Natalia Paradies,
Rolling Stone,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Abduct.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abduct. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.
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