vamoose
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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vamoosesimple
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vamoosessimple
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have vamoosedperfect
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has vamoosedperfect
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am vamoosingprogressive
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are vamoosingprogressive
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is vamoosingprogressive
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have been vamoosingperfect progressive
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has been vamoosingperfect progressive
Past
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vamoosedsimple
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had vamoosedperfect
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was vamoosingprogressive
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were vamoosingprogressive
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had been vamoosingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of vamoose
First recorded in 1830–40; from Spanish vamos “let us go,” imperative 1st person plural of ir “to go”
Explanation
When you vamoose, you exit quickly. If you're feeling overwhelmed by the loud music and crazy dancing at your friend's party, you might decide to vamoose without saying goodbye to her. If your grandfather's clearly getting ready to tell the family a long, boring story, you and your cousin might vamoose. Your little brother might prefer to stay at a birthday party long enough to whack the piñata but vamoose before the birthday boy starts opening gifts. In either case, someone leaves suddenly, and somewhat stealthily. Vamoose has been around since the mid-19th century, from the Spanish word vamos, or "let's go!"
Vocabulary lists containing vamoose
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Stargirl
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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:
The New York Times reported this week that venture capitalist Peter Thiel and Google co-founder Larry Page were looking to vamoose before year’s end.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026
And should I express how it makes me feel or just vamoose?
From Washington Post ● Sep. 26, 2022
In such a situation, taking all this in, a sane character would run, flee, skedaddle, vamoose, make tracks and call in the cops, or maybe an airstrike.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 28, 2021
Considering all that, what would it take for the networks to tell the Cowboys to vamoose?
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2014
"No joking round here," he growled; "now, then, if you know what's good for you you two kids will vamoose."
From The Girl Aviators' Motor Butterfly by Burnham, Margaret
The girl's away already an' Swedie an' me'll join you in a jiff an' the whole bunch of us vamooses, see.
From Every Man for Himself by Moorhouse, Hopkins
Also, two or three shady characters vamooses for fear of what a nacheral public eagerness to see that hearse in action may do.
From Faro Nell and Her Friends Wolfville Stories by Dunton, W. Herbert
When the birds vamoosed from East Sand Island, the population on the bridge ballooned from 333 breeding pairs in 2014 to a peak of more than 5,000 pairs in 2020.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 21, 2024
My de facto plus-one, with whom I’d recently celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary, had just vamoosed for a six-month research fellowship overseas.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 1, 2021
“I got to get out of here!” she yelled as she vamoosed.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 8, 2015
However, they were in an empty facility, at a time when breakfast service was over, the homeless clients vamoosed, the place already scrubbed by volunteers.
From Salon ● Oct. 16, 2012
She’d vamoosed into the tall grass, and off she was headed for the jungle, where it was plain to see he’d never find her.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
This month the duopoly joined New York City Comptroller Mark Levine’s campaign to stop Exxon Mobil from vamoosing to Texas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026
Jerry had, of course, intended doing a similar vamoosing stunt.
From The Outdoor Chums After Big Game Or, Perilous Adventures in the Wilderness by Allen, Quincy
What do you mean by breaking up a game in the middle and vamoosing with the ball?
From At Good Old Siwash by Fitch, George
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.
