flee

[flee]

verb (used without object)

fled, fleeing 

1. to run away, as from danger or pursuers; take flight.

2. to move swiftly; fly; speed.

verb (used with object)

fled, fleeing 

1. to run away from (a place, person, etc.).

   Synonyms: elude, shun, avoid, escape, evade

flee

¹

/ fliː /

verb

1. to run away from (a place, danger, etc); fly

   to flee the country

2. (intr) to run or move quickly; rush; speed

   she fled to the door

flee

²

/ fliː /

verb

1. a Scot word for fly 1

noun

1. a Scot word for fly 2

Other Word Forms

• outflee verb (used with object)
• unfleeing adjective
• fleer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of flee¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English fleen, Old English flēon; cognate with Old High German flichan ( German fliehen ), Gothic thliuhan; compare Old English fleogan “to fly”; fly ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of flee¹

Old English flēon ; related to Old Frisian fliā , Old High German fliohan , Gothic thliuhan

Example Sentences

TPS has allowed thousands of Somali nationals to live and work legally in the U.S. after fleeing conflict and humanitarian crises in Somalia.

Read more on Salon

"How can it be dangerous for the wife but not for the husband?" asks pastor, Ara Torosian, who himself fled Iran in 2010 after being detained for smuggling Bibles.

Read more on BBC

This would punish companies that are doing Chicago a favor by staying in downtown offices despite the city’s dysfunctions, rather than fleeing elsewhere.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The residents of West Bank refugee camps are mostly descended from Palestinians who fled or were driven from their homes during the war surrounding Israel's creation in 1948-49.

Read more on BBC

Her husband, John Barker Church, had fled England to escape imprisonment for bankruptcy and assumed the name of Carter.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• depart 
• desert 
• fly 
• get 
• jump 
• leave 
• retreat 
• take off 
• vanish 

When To Use

What does flee mean?

To flee is to run away or escape from a dangerous or otherwise negative situation.Much less commonly, flee can be used to mean to move at a fast pace. The past tense of flee is fled.Example: He was forced to flee his home as a result of the impending battle.