absent

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Contents

English [edit]

Alternative forms [edit]

Etymology 1 [edit]

  • From Middle English absent, Middle French absent, from Old French ausent, and their source, Latin absens, present participle of abesse (“to be away from”), from ab (“away”) + esse (“to be”).

Pronunciation [edit]

Adjective [edit]

absent (comparative absenter, superlative absentest)[1]

  1. (not comparable) Being away from a place; withdrawn from a place; not present; missing. [First attested around 1350 to 1470.][2]
  2. (not comparable) Not existing; lacking. [First attested around 1350 to 1470.][2]
    The part was rudimental or absent.
  3. (sometimes comparable) Inattentive to what is passing; absent-minded; preoccupied. [First attested in the early 18th century.][2]
    • 1746-1747, Chesterfield, Letters to his Son
      What is commonly called an absent man is commonly either a very weak or a very affected man.
Antonyms [edit]
Related terms [edit]
Translations [edit]
being away from a place
not existing
inattentive
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked

Noun [edit]

absent (plural absents)

  1. (obsolete) Absentee; a person who is away on occasion. [Attested from around 1350 to 1470 until the early 19th century.][2]

Preposition [edit]

absent

  1. (law) In the absence of; without. [First attested in the mid 20th century.][2]
    • 1919, State vs. Britt, Supreme Court of Missouri, Division 2, in The Southwestern Reporter, page 427
      If the accused refuse upon demand to pay money or deliver property (absent any excuse or excusing circumstance) which came into his hands as a bailee, such refusal might well constitute some evidence of conversion, with the requisite fraudulent intent required by the statute.
    • 2011, David Elstein, letter, London Review of Books, XXXIII.15:
      the Princess Caroline case [...] established that – absent a measurable ‘public interest’ in publication – she was safe from being photographed while out shopping.
Translations [edit]
without

Etymology 2 [edit]

From Old French absenter, from Late Latin absentare (“keep away, be away”).

Pronunciation [edit]

Verb [edit]

absent (third-person singular simple present absents, present participle absenting, simple past and past participle absented)

  1. (transitive, now reflexive) Keep away; stay away; go away. [First attested around 1350 to 1470.][2]
    • 1674, John Milton, Paradise Lost, Second Edition, Book IX
      Go; for thy stay, not free, absents thee more;
    • 1701-1703, Addison, "Remarks on Italy"
      If after due summons any member absents himself, he is to be fined.
    • 1945, George Orwell, Animal Farm, chapter 6
      This work was strictly voluntary, but any animal who absented himself from it would have his rations reduced by half.
  2. (intransitive, obsolete) Stay away; withdraw. [Attested from around 1350 to 1470 until the late 18th century.][2]
  3. (transitive, rare) Leave. [First attested around 1350 to 1470.][2]
Translations [edit]
to withhold from being present
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked

Anagrams [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ 1976 [1909], Gove, Philip Babcock editor, Webster's Third International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged, Springfield, MA: G. & C. Merriam Co., ISBN 0-87779-101-5, page 6:
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2003 [1933], Brown, Lesley editor, The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, edition 5th, Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-860575-7, page 8:

Catalan [edit]

Etymology [edit]

From Latin absēns.

Adjective [edit]

absent m, f (masculine and feminine plural absents)

  1. absent

Related terms [edit]

French [edit]

Etymology [edit]

Borrowed from Latin absens.

Pronunciation [edit]

Adjective [edit]

absent m (feminine absente, masculine plural absents, feminine plural absentes)

  1. absent
  2. absent-minded

Noun [edit]

absent m (plural absents)

  1. absentee; missing person

Anagrams [edit]

Jèrriais [edit]

Etymology [edit]

From Old French ausent, relatinized on the model of its ancestor, Latin absēns (“absent, missing”), present active participle of absum, abesse (“be away, be absent”).

Adjective [edit]

absent m (feminine absente, masculine plural absents, feminine plural absentes)

  1. absent

Romanian [edit]

Adjective [edit]

absent

  1. absent

Related terms [edit]

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