MEANING
To leave secretly, especially to evade legal action or responsibility.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- abscond with funds
- abscond from custody
On the page
The treasurer absconded with the colony’s payroll.
Before the summons arrived, he had absconded to the coast.
Nearby words
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- abscond
- Past tense
- absconded
- Past participle
- absconded
- Present participle
- absconding
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- abscond
- Present continuous
- am/is/are absconding
- Present perfect
- have/has absconded
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been absconding
- Past
- absconded
- Past continuous
- was/were absconding
- Past perfect
- had absconded
- Past perfect continuous
- had been absconding
- Future
- will abscond
- Future continuous
- will be absconding
- Future perfect
- will have absconded
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been absconding
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
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Usage notes
Primary category: literary. Forms: abscond; absconds; absconded; absconded; absconding Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Third-person singular: absconds.
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