abandonment

American  

[uh-ban-duhn-muhnt] / əˈbæn dən mənt /

noun

1. an act or instance of leaving a person or thing permanently and completely.

   He struggles to deal with his abandonment by his wife, and now having to care for their infant alone.

2. an act or instance of permanently setting aside a principle, discontinuing an activity, etc..

   I believe in the struggle for radical social change, but it must be accompanied by an abandonment of the notion that the end justifies the means.

3. an act or instance of giving up control of something, or of yielding to one’s impulses or to an external or spiritual force.

   No psychiatric diagnosis quite captures Hitler’s boundless will to lead, his self-deception, and his utter abandonment to evil.

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Other Word Forms

• nonabandonment noun

Etymology

Origin of abandonment

abandon ( def. ) + -ment ( def. )

Explanation

Abandonment is the act of getting rid of something. It’s how dogs become stray and children become orphaned. If abandonment is your greatest fear in life, make sure to surround yourself with loyal friends and treat them kindly. Abandonment, a noun meaning "relinquishment," stems from the French abandonnement and was first recorded in the early 17th century. "Life, misfortunes, isolation, abandonment, poverty, are battlefields which have their heroes; obscure heroes, sometimes greater than the illustrious heroes," said Victor Hugo. He treats a person's survival of abandonment with the utmost respect, perhaps more than that accorded survival of war or other more obvious trials.

Example Sentences

The star of the new “Malcolm in the Middle” series on his father’s abandonment, a two-year motorcycle trip and his comedic chops.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026

While some states still enforce these laws, they often include exceptions, including parental abandonment or failure to provide support, which would relieve the adult children of any liability.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 25, 2026

“What began as a heartbreaking act of abandonment has turned into a powerful example of compassion, teamwork, and community partnership,” the department said in a statement.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 23, 2026

Crews are poorly protected throughout the industry, with unpaid wages and abandonment by owners all-too frequent.

From BBC • Feb. 10, 2026

A dam across the Missouri River in Nebraska silted up so disastrously that a noisome ooze began to pour into the town of Niobrara, eventually forcing its permanent abandonment.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

Related Words

• renunciation