disappear
Americanverb (used without object)
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to cease to be seen; vanish from sight.
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to cease to exist or be known; pass away; end gradually.
One by one the symptoms disappeared.
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(of a person) to vanish under suspicious circumstances.
The dictator's outspoken opponent disappeared that evening, shortly after midnight.
verb (used with object)
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to cause to disappear.
The magician then disappeared the card.
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to kidnap or arrest and then imprison or kill (a political opponent) without due process of law.
verb
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(intr) to cease to be visible; vanish
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(intr) to go away or become lost, esp secretly or without explanation
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(intr) to cease to exist, have effect, or be known; become extinct or lost
the pain has disappeared
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(tr) (esp in South and Central America) to arrest secretly and presumably imprison or kill (a member of an opposing political group)
Related Words
Disappear, fade, vanish suggest that something passes from sight. Disappear is used of whatever suddenly or gradually goes out of sight: We watched him turn down a side street and then disappear. Fade suggests a (complete or partial) disappearance that proceeds gradually and often by means of a blending into something else: Colors in the sky at sunrise quickly fade. Vanish suggests complete, generally rapid, and often mysterious disappearance: A mirage can vanish as suddenly as it appears.
Other Word Forms
- disappearance noun
- nondisappearing adjective
- undisappearing adjective
Etymology
Origin of disappear
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.
Two of those patients experienced complete remission, meaning their cancers disappeared entirely.
From Science Daily
The panic has intensified thereafter as more founders raised the alarm about IT services disappearing by 2030.
From BBC
Regular police have all but disappeared from the streets of Tehran, adding to a sense of general insecurity, residents said.
It was preposterous, but how could I explain it to someone who simply wanted me to disappear?
From Literature
“It’s me,” I tell her, not slowing as I reach the second landing, hoping I can disappear without further conversation.
From Literature
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.
