evacuation
Americannoun
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evacuations
plural
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the act or process of evacuating, or the condition of being evacuated; discharge or expulsion, as of contents.
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Physiology. discharge, as of waste matter through the excretory passages, especially from the bowels.
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something evacuated or discharged.
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the removal of persons or things from an endangered area.
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clearance by removal of troops, equipment, etc.
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the withdrawal or removal of troops, civilians, etc.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of evacuation
1350–1400; Middle English evacuacioun < Late Latin ēvacuātion- (stem of ēvacuātiō ). See evacuate, -ion
Explanation
An evacuation happens when people are removed from or leave a dangerous place. An approaching hurricane sometimes results in the evacuation of islands and coastal towns. A fire drill or bomb threat can cause the evacuation of a school building, and during World War II there were frequent evacuations of buildings and areas of cities including London, when people hurried into shelters. Another meaning of evacuation is the emptying of something, whether a container or a human body. This relates to the word's original meaning, "discharge of blood from the body," from the Latin evacuare, "to empty."
Vocabulary lists containing evacuation
Salt to the Sea
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CTE Construction ("Core Curriculum: Introductory Craft Skills,") Vocabulary from Module One
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"Building Design and Construction Handbook," Vocabulary from Section 1
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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:
Two people have died and an evacuation is under way after two fires broke out within minutes of each other on a Greek island near Athens.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett on Saturday urged residents living in or near flooded areas to have evacuation plans.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
The entire area has been blanketed by a thick plume of yellowish smoke, prompting the partial evacuation of two villages close by.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
A forest fire in the Landes region of southwest France reignited early Saturday forcing the evacuation of another 100 residents and holidaymakers around the town of Luglon, authorities said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
The memo details the plans for the evacuation of the American embassy in Warsaw and Willa’s work to dismantle the office.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Emergency shelters were opened in several towns along the coast, as evacuations continued throughout the night.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
One Ukrainian unit says evacuations with ground drones can take anywhere from six hours to three days and involve 14 people in planning and execution.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
In the summer of 2016, the Soberanes fire burned more than 130,000 acres north of Big Sur, destroying dozens of homes and forcing evacuations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Typhoon Dolphin made landfall in densely populated eastern China on Sunday, meteorological authorities said, after the storm triggered more than 1,000 flight cancellations, evacuations and a top-level alert.
From Barron's ● Aug. 9, 2026
Not only were these evacuations and odors loathsome, they were considered dangerous.
From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy
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.
