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:
At first, the disappearance appeared to be a missing person’s case.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026
Tensions between the two central American countries have escalated over the disappearance of the four air force technicians working as part of a UN-backed anti-gang organisation in Haiti.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
The findings may have implications that extend beyond the disappearance of Arctic sea ice itself.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 26, 2026
As a labor of loving duty, the duo conducts its own dedicated inquiry into Jeanie’s disappearance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
“How cool will it be when we can just —” Seamus clicked his fingers to indicate disappearance.
From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling
Some researchers previously suggested that climate change or unusually extreme weather might have triggered the disappearances.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 3, 2026
These preserved animals offered scientists a rare opportunity to examine the period before and after the mysterious disappearances.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 3, 2026
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
If she’d known how out of sorts his disappearances made her, she would have rebuffed him.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
