MEANING
1. To leave someone or something without further support, or stop pursuing a plan.
2. A lack of restraint or caution in doing something.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- abandon a project
- abandon a companion
On the page
The team abandoned the route when the bridge failed.
Nearby words
Word forms
- Base
- abandon
- Past tense
- abandoned
- Past participle
- abandoned
- Present participle
- abandoning
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- abandon
- Present continuous
- am/is/are abandoning
- Present perfect
- have/has abandoned
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been abandoning
- Past
- abandoned
- Past continuous
- was/were abandoning
- Past perfect
- had abandoned
- Past perfect continuous
- had been abandoning
- Future
- will abandon
- Future continuous
- will be abandoning
- Future perfect
- will have abandoned
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been abandoning
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Primary category: literary / elevated general. Forms: abandon; abandons; abandoned; abandoned; abandoning. Noun use is uncountable. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: abandons.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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