depart
Americanverb (used without object)
-
departs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
departed,
past participle, past
-
departing
present participle
-
to go away; leave.
She departed from Paris today. The train departs at 10:52.
- Antonyms:
- arrive
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to diverge or deviate (usually followed byfrom ).
The new method departs from the old in several respects.
-
to pass away, as from life or existence; die.
verb (used with object)
-
departs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
departed,
past participle, past
-
departing
present participle
noun
verb
-
to go away; leave
-
to start out; set forth
-
(usually foll by from) to deviate; differ; vary
to depart from normal procedure
-
(tr) to quit (archaic, except in the phrase depart this life )
Synonym Usage
Depart, retire, retreat, withdraw imply leaving a place. Depart is a somewhat literary word for going away from a place: to depart on a journey. Retire emphasizes absenting oneself or drawing back from a place: to retire from a position in battle. Retreat implies a necessary withdrawal, especially as a result of adverse fortune in war: to retreat to secondary lines of defense. Withdraw suggests leaving some specific place or situation, usually for some definite and often unpleasant reason: to withdraw from a hopeless task.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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departsimple
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departssimple
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have departedperfect
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has departedperfect
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am departingprogressive
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are departingprogressive
-
is departingprogressive
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have been departingperfect progressive
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has been departingperfect progressive
Past
-
departedsimple
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had departedperfect
-
was departingprogressive
-
were departingprogressive
-
had been departingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of depart
1175–1225; Middle English departen < Old French departir, equivalent to de- de- + partir to go away; see part ( v. )
Explanation
To depart is to go away or to choose a different direction. If you are catching a plane, you are soon to depart. And, if you are wearing a kilt instead of jeans, you depart from your usual look. Airports and train stations have gates for arrivals and departures. Airplanes and people coming in "arrive" while those going out depart. You also can depart without going anywhere, as when you change your mind and depart from an earlier decision. To "depart from the norm" is an expression for doing something different than expected, like giggling during a tear-jerker of a movie.
Vocabulary lists containing depart
"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 8
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The New SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The more frequently droplets appear and depart, the more often the surface is refreshed, allowing heat to move through it more efficiently.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 23, 2026
He left the media and most of the White House staff to depart on the presidential Air Force One 747 jet, which became, essentially, a decoy.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Cracker Barrel announced on July 27 that Masino would depart this month, succeeded by David Deno, a restaurant industry veteran and former CEO of Outback Steakhouse parent Bloomin’ Brands.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Earlier in the day, an AFP correspondent saw dozens of trucks loaded with furniture and other belongings waiting to set off from near the city of Hasakeh, with men, women and children eager to depart.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
He turns to depart, and I jump from my chair.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
He boards a legacy Air Force One, but secretly transfers to a smaller military aircraft and departs Turkey.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Obviously with massive spoilers ahoy, here are eight of the biggest ways Nolan’s “Odyssey” departs from Homer’s.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
The UK boss of budget airline Wizz Air told the BBC that British holidaymakers should arrive at European airports three hours before their flight home departs.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
According to several NBA news-breakers, including Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer and ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the Warriors are attempting to sign James this offseason as he departs the Lakers.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
They converse for a moment, then Taryn departs.
From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black
In an 1880s Symbolist monument for a member of the Carpaneto family, an angelic helmsman is shown steering away the departed in an impressive boat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
The aircraft had departed from the Loisaba wildlife reserve.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
Earlier this month, Google veteran Jeff Dean departed along with three of the company’s top AI researchers to launch the startup Discovery Loop.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
According to flight tracking data, the plane carrying Kinahan departed Dubai at 13:19 local time and is expected to land in Dublin before 19:00 local time on Sunday.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
At 6:30 a.m., the president's special train departed the city where he had been shot, carrying him to the sea and—everyone hoped—recovery.
From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow
Trump said on Truth Social that Leavitt is departing her role at the end of the month so she can spend more time with her children and family: “A decision I totally understand and respect!”
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2026
Under the departing President Gustavo Petro, a former leftist guerrilla, the government embarked on simultaneous peace negotiations with about a dozen narco-trafficking groups to urge them to disarm and abandon drug smuggling.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Newcastle United manager Matthias Jaissle says a decision about Bruno Guimaraes' future had already been taken by the time he first met the club's departing captain.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
On Wednesday, longtime Google executive Jeff Dean said he was departing the company to pursue his own startup.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
Not a great deal is known, therefore, about where he traveled after departing Las Vegas in May 1991.
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
