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

Derived 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

“GAS STATION” pairs a frenetic synth melody reminiscent of Crystal Castles with lyrics about abandonment.

From Salon • Jun. 5, 2026

ITF figures show 2025 was the worst year on record for abandonment, affecting 6,233 seafarers on 410 ships, with Indian nationals most affected.

From Barron's • Jun. 5, 2026

The ITF defines abandonment as cases where shipowners walk away from crews, leaving them unpaid, stranded, and without essentials such as food, water or medical care.

From BBC • May 23, 2026

So going back nearly 60 years, the late Mr. Flint has been left to quietly suffer the indignities of desecration and abandonment, but for temporary intervention.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2026

Being chased by witches and warlocks, battling monsters, even defeating demons, was nothing compared to the task of facing the reality of our father’s abandonment.

From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall

Related Words

• renunciation