as in escaping
to get free from a dangerous or confining situation
the burglar was trying to abscond with the jewels when he tumbled down the stairs
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Recent Examples of absconding
Warrants in Texas have been issued for the absconding Democrats arrest.
—
Jim Talamonti, The Washington Examiner, 12 Aug. 2025
In early-1970s Framingham, Massachusetts, taciturn family man James (Josh O’Connor) makes the rash, largely inscrutable decision to orchestrate a heist at the local art museum, absconding with a selection of modern paintings—without much of a plan.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025
The older brother, Obed, had a beautiful daughter and a beautiful, young ex-wife, both of whom had left him, absconding to the West Coast.
—Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2025
In this unregulated space, however, horror stories abound of coaches and team owners breaking promises and absconding with players’ money, including in Etienne’s league.
—Chris Quintana, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024
The key moment in the film is a montage of the lovers absconding to Chris’s Malibu getaway for a trip that’s ridiculously, car-commercial lush.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 4 Dec. 2024
Noblewoman Jeanne de La Motte then, so the story goes, posed as the queen and convinced an out-of-favor cardinal to give her the lavish necklace as a gift before absconding with the lucrative diamonds.
—Hannah Peart, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
Despite never having laid eyes on him, Nam feels drawn to understand where and how his father passed, and before absconding from Vietnam embarks on a journey with Hoa, Ba and Viet to find the site of his death.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Jim Talamonti, The Washington Examiner, 12 Aug. 2025
In early-1970s Framingham, Massachusetts, taciturn family man James (Josh O’Connor) makes the rash, largely inscrutable decision to orchestrate a heist at the local art museum, absconding with a selection of modern paintings—without much of a plan.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025
The older brother, Obed, had a beautiful daughter and a beautiful, young ex-wife, both of whom had left him, absconding to the West Coast.
—Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2025
In this unregulated space, however, horror stories abound of coaches and team owners breaking promises and absconding with players’ money, including in Etienne’s league.
—Chris Quintana, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024
The key moment in the film is a montage of the lovers absconding to Chris’s Malibu getaway for a trip that’s ridiculously, car-commercial lush.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 4 Dec. 2024
Noblewoman Jeanne de La Motte then, so the story goes, posed as the queen and convinced an out-of-favor cardinal to give her the lavish necklace as a gift before absconding with the lucrative diamonds.
—Hannah Peart, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
Despite never having laid eyes on him, Nam feels drawn to understand where and how his father passed, and before absconding from Vietnam embarks on a journey with Hoa, Ba and Viet to find the site of his death.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for absconding
Verb
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According to the police report, Gibson acknowledged that his dogs were responsible and admitted there had been ongoing issues with them escaping the property.—
Amber Corrine,
VIBE.com,
7 Oct. 2025
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Some New Yorkers have complained that locking the passageways between train cars might prevent them from escaping to another part of the train during an emergency.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Groves had eluded capture for nearly five months after fleeing the New Orleans jail through a hole behind a toilet.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Oct. 2025
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That man, Jermain Hall, has since been charged with unlawful use of a weapon, armed criminal action and aggravated fleeing a stop or detention.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In offseason videos, though, he’s been flying through the air and flushing down ferocious dunks, so the athleticism looks to be back.—
Stan Son,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
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In one common attack, known as GPS spoofing, hackers transmit false location data that tricks a drone into flying off course.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
7 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Absconding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/absconding. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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