disappearance
Americannoun
-
disappearances
plural
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of disappearance
Explanation
A disappearance occurs when something vanishes from sight. The disappearance of the stars behind the clouds makes it a bad night for watching a meteor shower. While this word is often used when something's not visible, you can also use it for something that dies out or ceases to exist, like the disappearance of a particular animal species that's gone extinct or even disappearance of cursive writing in schools. In news stories, the word frequently refers to a crime involving a missing person: "The disappearance of his neighbor was very mysterious."
Vocabulary lists containing disappearance
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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:
But the incremental disappearance of ordinary interactions raises a question worth considering: What happens when convenience becomes the organizing principle of our public lives?
From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026
Following his disappearance, a number of theories about what had happened to him began to circulate on social media.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
The U.S. military denied any involvement in the drone strikes in March and the disappearance of the vessel in January.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
"It's necessary to support a struggle against the indifference of a government that refuses to accept that there is a disappearance crisis," said 69-year-old Atanacio Pina, whose missing son was later found dead.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
I don’t know for sure if the woman in black has my mom, but I do know that the woman in black has something to do with my mother’s disappearance.
From "Hurricane Child" by Kheryn Callender
As Béatrice’s amateur detective work pulls her in deeper, the strands begin to suggest a conspiracy, one marked by mysterious disappearances and the clandestine sway of the Vatican.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
The surfers' disappearances and deaths sparked widespread outrage and grief in Australia and the United States, prompting a major social media search for their bodies.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
Activists put the number of disappearances much higher, at around 7,000 – but there is no reliable source of data and no way to verify either side's claims.
From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026
Years on, the doctor-turned-activist became one of the most recognisable faces of a movement demanding answers about enforced disappearances in the province.
From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026
Although at first these inquiries troubled Holmes, he realized quickly that neither family believed he had anything to do with the disappearances.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
