ABANDONMENT

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does abandonment mean? 

• ABANDONMENT (noun)
  The noun ABANDONMENT has 3 senses:

1. the act of giving something up

2. withdrawing support or help despite allegiance or responsibility

3. the voluntary surrender of property (or a right to property) without attempting to reclaim it or give it away

  Familiarity information: ABANDONMENT used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ABANDONMENT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The act of giving something up

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

abandonment; desertion; forsaking

Hypernyms ("abandonment" is a kind of...):

rejection (the act of rejecting something)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "abandonment"):

exposure (abandoning without shelter or protection (as by leaving an infant out in the open))

apostasy; tergiversation (the act of abandoning a party for cause)

bolt (a sudden abandonment (as from a political party))

Derivation:

abandon (stop maintaining or insisting on; of ideas or claims)

abandon (give up with the intent of never claiming again)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Withdrawing support or help despite allegiance or responsibility

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

abandonment; defection; desertion

Context example:

his abandonment of his wife and children left them penniless

Hypernyms ("abandonment" is a kind of...):

withdrawal (the act of withdrawing)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "abandonment"):

abscondment; decampment (the act of running away secretly (as to avoid arrest))

absence without leave; unauthorized absence (unauthorized military absence)

deviationism (ideological defection from the party line (especially from orthodox communism))

Derivation:

abandon (leave someone who needs or counts on you; leave in the lurch)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The voluntary surrender of property (or a right to property) without attempting to reclaim it or give it away

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("abandonment" is a kind of...):

disposal; disposition (the act or means of getting rid of something)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "abandonment"):

discard; throwing away (getting rid something that is regarded as useless or undesirable)

discard ((cards) the act of throwing out a useless card or of failing to follow suit)

Derivation:

abandon (forsake, leave behind)

 Context examples 

But biogas units often lack maintenance leading to abandonment or underuse.

(Shift to biogas helps revive forests, SciDev.Net)

Oh, that fear of his self-abandonment—far worse than my abandonment—how it goaded me!

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

One year after abandonment, fields had, on average, 38% of the plant diversity and 34% of the plant productivity of the land that was never ploughed.

(Plant biodiversity struggles to return in wake of agricultural abandonment, National Science Foundation)

Mercedes screamed, cried, laughed, and manifested the chaotic abandonment of hysteria.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

Collapse of the Maya civilization that occurred between 800 and 900 A.D.. Symptoms of the collapse included abandonment of the countryside and ceremonial centers as well as a cessation of cultural activities.

(Classic Collapse, NOAA Paleoclimate Glossary)

Dr James H. Barrett, from the University of Cambridge’s Department of Archaeology, argues that the Norse abandonment of Greenland may have been precipitated by a perfect storm of depleted resources and volatile prices, exacerbated by climate change.

(Over-hunting walruses contributed to the collapse of Norse Greenland, University of Cambridge)

And 91 years after abandonment, abandoned fields had 73% of the plant diversity and 53% of the plant productivity.

(Plant biodiversity struggles to return in wake of agricultural abandonment, National Science Foundation)