abandoned

American  

[uh-ban-duhnd] / əˈbæn dənd /

adjective

1. forsaken or deserted.

   an abandoned building; an abandoned kitten.

2. unrestrained or uncontrolled; uninhibited.

   She danced with abandoned enthusiasm.

3. utterly lacking in moral restraints; shameless; wicked.

   an abandoned and dissolute ruler.

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abandoned British  

/ əˈbændənd /

adjective

1. deserted

   an abandoned windmill

2. forsaken

   an abandoned child

3. unrestrained; uninhibited

   wild, abandoned dancing

4. depraved; profligate

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Related Words

See immoral.

Other Word Forms

• abandonedly adverb
• half-abandoned adjective
• unabandoned adjective

Etymology

Origin of abandoned

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; abandon + -ed ²

Example Sentences

Two years after a newborn baby was found abandoned on a freezing winter's night, London police look set to shelve their investigation despite having discovered that she is the sibling of two other foundlings.

From Barron's

It was three o’clock, and we were about two miles from Jenkintown, tucked into an abandoned shack in the woods along Shady Oak Lane.

From Literature

Skeptics say the investment pledges underpinning the agreements are often built on existing investment plans and could easily be abandoned without consequence.

From The Wall Street Journal

Whatever it was Amorim was constructing, the project has now been abandoned.

From BBC

The trend has also led police forces to appeal to parents to warn their children of the dangers of going into abandoned buildings.

From BBC