absentadj.n.
/ˈabs(ə)nt/, U.S. /ˈæbsənt/ A. adj.
1.
a. Not present in a place or at an occasion; away. Frequently in predicative use.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > [adjective]
absenta1325
missinga1400
truanta1550
absenteda1586
AWOL1895
a1325 Statutes of Realm (2011) vii. 46 Ȝif þe lord of þilke baillif, þat was absent, come afterward bifore iustices..ant proferez him to uerefien..þat [etc.].
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1961) Deut. xxix. 15 Ne to ȝow alone y þis couenaunt smyte..bote to alle, present & absent [L. absentibus].
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1879) VII. 35 (MED) Þe kyng was absent, for he was ȝit of tendre age.
1428 in J. Raine Vol. Eng. Misc. N. Counties Eng. (1890) 7 (MED) Many of ye consell of ye chambre at yat tyme war absent.
a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 201 As he was absent his enmyes in þe kyngis hous cried on þe kyng to clepe him ageyn.
a1500 ( J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. (Rawl.) (1898) 187 (MED) Sumtyme euery man Is absent to the, but thou art al tymes presente to thy-Selfe.
1578 in J. D. Marwick Rec. Convent. Royal Burghs Scotl. (1870) I. 72 Gif ony war absent.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Julius Caesar (1623) iv. ii. 208 With this she fell distract, And (her Attendants absent) swallow'd fire. View more context for this quotation
1661 J. Fell Life Hammond 222 To be absent from any part of publick Worship he thus deeply resented.
1716 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. 20 Sept. (1965) I. 269 I know that you can think of an absent Freind even in the midst of a Court.
1755 B. Bright's New Jrnl. 6 If..his Mistress..is absent, the Clock tick-ticks very slow.
1817 J. Mill Hist. Brit. India II. v. v. 485 Absent officers were summoned to join their corps.
1881 H. James Washington Square xxiii. 173 He often spent an hour in turning over the curious collections of its absent proprietor.
1932 W. Faulkner Light in August xi. 220 Now and then she would be absent from home three and four days at a time.
1992 S. Sontag Volcano Lover i. vi. 93 She still pined for him whenever he was absent for more than a day.
2007 Sunday Herald (Glasgow) 1 Apr. 3/1 A house from which adults are temporarily absent and which is available for a riotous party.
b. Of a place or position: empty, vacant, unoccupied.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > fact of being unoccupied > [adjective]
voida1350
unoccupied1560
absent1587
devoid1590
vacant1600
naked1643
vacated1791
untrenched1887
1587 Earl of Leicester Let. 12–22 Aug. in H. Brugmans Correspondentie van R. Dudley (1931) III. 59 Ye may se, what cace we pore men ar in, that serve in such absent places.
1731 J. Taperell New Misc. 28 His forlorn Spouse Turns to a Fountain, and forgets her House: By Night, with Tears o'verwhelms his absent Place.
1853 Maine Rep. 33 91 If they preferred to have Dr. Clark take the absent place, he would rather give the stand to him.
1893 M. F. Stevens By Subtle Fragrance Held ii. 33 At first it was ‘only a severe cold’, next an absent seat at the table.
1918 Proc. 26th Convent. United Mine Workers of Amer. I. 1056 Any man working his place out gets any absent place in the mines.
1975–6 Film Q. Winter 35/1 The absent place left by Lucy's departure.
2006 K. M. Bray Crazy Horse xix. 268 Crazy Horse sought the vision of guidance in what Lakotas called mani'l, the vast absent space of the wilderness.
c. Originally and chiefly poetic. Of a period of time (as absent hour, absent time, etc.): during which a person is away.
ΚΠ
1590 C. Marlowe Tamburlaine: 2nd Pt. sig. G2 How haue ye spent your absent time from me?
a1616 W. Shakespeare Othello (1622) iii. iv. 171 Louers absent houres, More tedious then the diall. View more context for this quotation
1684 A. Behn Love-lett. between Noble-man & Sister 292 I am going from thee—when are we like to meet—oh, how shall I support my absent hours!
1720 L. Theobald Richard II i. 6 I'm glad to think nor absent Hours, Nor bustling War, cou'd from thy gen'rous Breast Erase the Mem'ry of that beauteous Maid.
1745 M. Akenside Odes on Several Subj. vii. 30 So soon again to meet the fair? So pensive all this absent hour?
a1809 A. Seward Poet. Wks (1810) I. 27 Yet, yet my soul might better bear These absent weeks forlorn, Did not presaging clouds of fear Lour on thy wish'd return.
1892 ‘V. Fane’ Poems II. 98 I strain not after gold..,nor care to while The absent hour with pleasures that beguile.
1957 R. Mezey in D. Hall et al. New Poets Eng. & Amer. 226 A simpler thing, a chair, or the very room, Recalls her presence in her absent hours.
1999 T. J. Fleming Duel x. 208 Where was he during those absent weeks?
2004 J. Morgan Passion 320 She..had reason to believe that he was amusing himself with actresses, dancers, &c., during these absent hours.
2. Of a thing, quality, etc.: that is lacking; that does not exist in or is not a feature of a particular situation, context, etc. Frequently in predicative use.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > [adjective] > absent, lost, or lacking
absenta1398
wanting?a1425
lacking1480
alacka1529
void1554
defaulting1584
lacked1590
lack1591
destituent1660
unaccounted1799
truant1869
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 22 He knowiþ sensibil þinges present & absent by here owne material schappis.
a1425 (?a1400) Cloud of Unknowing (Harl. 674) (1944) 115 (MED) Ymaginacion & sensualite worchin beestly in alle bodely þinges, wheþer þei be present or absente in þe body.
c1475 (a1449) J. Lydgate Interp. & Virtues Mass l. 418 in Minor Poems (1911) i. 105 (MED) Beware..That loue and charyte be not fer absent.
a1500 tr. Thomas à Kempis De Imitatione Christi (Trin. Dublin) (1893) 51 (MED) Grace was absent.
1575 J. Rolland Treat. Court Venus ii. f. 20 Thair was na thing absent Of gold, nor silk, that ganit sic cumpanie.
1611 B. Jonson Catiline iv. sig. K What lust was euer absent from thine eyes? View more context for this quotation
1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan i. x. 47 Any of which qualities being absent, one may neverthelesse be a Worthy man.
1716 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad II. viii. 632 Let num'rous Fires the absent Sun supply.
1776 J. Bentham Fragm. on Govt. i. §12 19 It [sc. the habit of obedience] has been spoken of simply as absent (that is, as being perfectly absent) or, in other words, we have spoken as if there were no habit of obedience at all.
1818 S. T. Coleridge Friend (new ed.) I. ii. iv. 262 The reason is either lost or not lost, that is, wholly present or wholly absent.
1860 J. Tyndall Glaciers of Alps ii. §17. 324 Crevasses..are almost totally absent at the opposite side of the glacier.
1924 W. S. Jones Timbers v. 30 Resin ducts are usually absent from the wood of many genera of Conifers.
1968 New Eng. Jrnl. Med. 1 Feb. 254/2 The enzyme..was absent only from noncellular tissues..or tissue with low cell density.
2005 Times Lit. Suppl. 8 Apr. 30/3 Transmigration of souls, for example..seems to be absent from Egyptian religion.
3. Distant in time; in the past or future. rare.
ΚΠ
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. xiii. D And as for Babilons tyme, it is at honde, & hir dayes maye not be longe absent.
1883 E. A. Bowring tr. J. W. von Goethe Poems 68 The snow-flakes fall in showers, The time is absent still, When all Spring's beauteous flowers..Our hearts with joy shall fill.
1918 Spatula 24 262/2 The day is absent, at least for a while, when you can get things just the minute you want them.
4. Absent-minded, preoccupied, distracted. Of an expression, etc.: characteristic of this state of mind.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > inattention > mental wandering > abstraction, absent-mindedness > [adjective]
in one's musesa1500
abstract1509
abstracteda1586
absent1631
thoughtful1656
vacant1680
lost in thought1681
withdrawn1713
dreamy1794
dun1797
preoccupied1801
absent-minded1824
pebble-beached1890
1631 G. Downame Covenant of Grace 136 Without attention, being present in body, we are absent in minde.
1710 R. Steele Spectator No. 30. ⁋4 The whole assembly is made up of absent men, that is,..whose minds and bodies never keep company with one another.
1749 T. Smollett tr. A. R. Le Sage Gil Blas III. viii. xiii. 184 I lost all my gaiety, became absent and thoughtful; in a word, a miserable animal.
1816 W. Scott Antiquary I. xii. 269 Much curious and erudite information, which, from the absent look of his auditor, Isabella might shrewdly guess was entirely thrown away.
1875 P. G. Hamerton Intellect. Life (ed. 2) xi. v. 429 Deep thinkers are notoriously absent, for thought requires abstraction from what surrounds us.
1920 E. Wharton Age of Innocence xviii. 168 She half-rose and looked about her with absent eyes.
1955 E. Hyams tr. Z. Oldenbourg Cornerstone iv. 369 He looked at her for a long time—as always, she had an absent look.
1993 B. Rowlands Over Edge (BNC) 66 She leaned on an elbow and stirred her coffee, an absent expression softening her sharp features.
B. n.† 2. An absentee. Obsolete.
1. With the. That which is absent; absent people collectively.
ΚΠ
c1450 tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Lyfe Manhode (Cambr.) (1869) 131 (MED) And j telle thee j greeue as wel the absente as the presente.
1620 in J. D. Marwick Rec. Convent. Royal Burghs Scotl. (1878) III. 110 Ane vther persone..of the same qualitie of the absent.
1751 S. Johnson Rambler No. 152. ⁋13 Letters are written..to preserve in the minds of the absent either love or esteem.
1863 E. C. Gaskell Sylvia's Lovers II. viii. 130 He was strongly affected by whatever was present, and apt to forget the absent.
a1911 D. G. Phillips Susan Lenox (1917) II. xxiii. 527 They had no time to bother either about the absent or about themselves.
1947 C. Day Lewis Poetic Image iii. 66 That very sense of longing, of yearning for the absent, which 'nostalgia' conveys to us now.
2000 R. Sokolowski Introd. to Phenomenol. iii. 36 This postulation of a presence to substitute for the absent is highly inadequate.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > [noun] > one who is absent
absenta1500
discontinuer1577
absenter1678
absentee1735
missing person1850
absence1866
a1500 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Nero) vii. 1754 Þe byschopis þat þar war Off þa absentis had na powar For to mak anssware.
1567 Abp. M. Parker Let. Nov. in Corr. (1853) (modernized text) 308 How many..be resident..and in what place and calling the absents do dwell.
1699 Bp. G. Burnet Expos. 39 Articles (1700) xxviii. 341 Some parts of the Elements were sent to the absents, to those in Prison, and particularly to the sick.
1702 E. Gibson Schedule Rev. 27 The Absents lose their Right of Voting.
1820 Principal Acts Gen. Assembly Church of Scotl. 38 A committee named for revising the Commissions to the Members of this Assembly, censuring absents from the Diets thereof.
Phrases
a. Chiefly Military. absent without leave: away from a post, place of work, etc., without authorization (abbreviated AWOL). Also as an attributive phrase, forming compounds as absent without leave charge, absent without leave status, etc.
ΚΠ
1658 W. Prynne Plea for Lords 372 A fine was assessed by the House on every Member that was absent without leave.
1743 H. Bland Abstr. Mil. Discipline (1969) iii. 31 Whenever the Regiment is drawn out, no Officer must be absent without Leave.
1797 Ld. Nelson 29 Mar. in Dispatches & Lett. (1845) III. 7 Five or six men absent without leave, who can not be ‘Run’ on the Ship's books, not having been absent three musters.
1832 Times 16 Jan. 2/1 The Chamber of Representatives met yesterday, when it appeared that there were 39 members absent without leave, and only 51 present.
1889 MacMillan's Mag. Dec. 154/1 I shall have to give him twenty-eight days' confinement at least for being absent without leave.
1918 Red Cross Bull. 28 Oct. 9/3 (heading) Home Service workers to aid Army in solution of the absent-without-leave problem.
1956 M. Dickens Angel in Corner viii. 128 They wouldn't let him go to see her, so he went absent without leave, and of course that lost him his chance.
1973 Billings (Montana) Gaz. 13 July 17 She said her husband, since being put on absent-without-leave status from his Omaha job, has spent his days doing some legal work.
1993 Army Lawyer Oct. 22 The accused's defense to an absent without leave charge (AWOL) that he suffered from amnesia during the absent period.
2007 Liverpool Echo (Nexis) 20 Aug. 3 Around 1,200 military personnel remain on the run after deserting over the last 10 years. Most are male soldiers who have gone absent without leave for family reasons.
b.
absent without leave n. U.S. Military (a) an offence or charge of being absent without leave; (b) a person who is absent without leave; = AWOL n. 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > warrior > soldier > type of soldier generally > [noun] > absent without leave
absent without leave1915
AWOL1918
1915 C. C. Waddell Girl of Guard Line vii. 90 A tool of the gang, as you call me, would hardly be down in this luxurious little coalhole, staring an ‘absent without leave’ in the face.
1919 Cent. Mag. Nov. 4/1 Most of the fellows in here are just plain drunks or awols. Awols? Why, absent without leaves.
1978 Kokomo (Indiana) Tribune 27 Sept. 17/2 He has a couple of ‘absent without leaves’ in his past.
1979 Daily News-Record (Harrisonburg, Va.) 23 Aug. 20/5 We are 90 percent positive that they were absent without leaves from the U.S. Army.
1990 H. E. Russell & A. Beigel Understanding Human Behavior for Effective Police Work (ed. 3) xvi. 256 In this group, there was a higher frequency of absent without leaves and other disciplinary problems.
Compounds
absent healing n. the healing of illness by a spiritualist medium who is not present with the patient; cf. contact healing n. at contact n. Compounds 3.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > spiritualism > [noun] > spiritual healing
spirit healing1856
absent healing1906
contact healing1945
the world > health and disease > healing > medical treatment > non-scientific treatments > [noun] > absent healing by spiritualist medium
absent healing1906
1906 H. W. Dresser Health & Inner Life ix. 218 Oftentimes absent healing is very effective,—occasionally more successful than present treatment.
1956 R. M. Lester Towards Hereafter v. 67 While I was having this contact healing, I was also having absent healing.
1997 B. Rowlands Which? Guide Complementary Med. 139 No one really knows how healing—especially absent healing—works.
absent vote n. a vote cast (by post, by proxy, etc.) when the voter is unable to attend the polling station in person, an absentee vote.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > free will > choice or choosing > expression of choice by some approved method > [noun] > voting by post or when absent
absent vote1850
letter ballot1874
vote-by-mail1880
postal ballot1888
postal vote1903
postal voting1913
1850 J. R. Browne Rep. Calif. Constit. Convent. 1849 14 Mr. McCarver desired to offer an amendment providing that a majority of the members from each district shall control the absent votes.
1925 Hansard Commons 5th Ser. 183 1355 I do not see any need for imposing..a condition for receiving the benefit of an absent vote.
2001 G. Segell Electronic Democracy & UK 2001 Elections 25 If you are on holiday on the day chosen for the election then you can still apply to have an absent vote for a single election.
absent voter n. a person authorized to vote in an election (by post, by proxy, etc.) although unable to attend the polling station in person; an absentee voter.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > office > appointment to office > choosing or fact of being chosen for office > election of representative body by vote > right to vote at elections > [noun] > one who has right to vote > other types
out-voter1837
non-voter1851
absentee1864
absent voter1867
silent voter1872
floating voter1905
1867 Deb. & Proc. Constit. Convent. State of Michigan 286/2 It is the purpose of this committee to retain the same qualification in the case of an absent voter, as in the case of one who is at home.
1918 Act 8 George V c. 64, sched. 1, §16 The registration officer..shall place the claimant (if registered) on the absent voters list.
2007 Herald Express (Torquay) (Nexis) 7 Mar. 15 Absent voters, including those overseas in the Armed Forces, may have lost their vote because of deadline problems.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
absentv.
/əbˈsɛnt/, /abˈsɛnt/, U.S. /æbˈsɛnt/ 1.
a. intransitive. To withdraw, remove oneself; to stay away. In later use chiefly South Asian.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > be absent [verb (intransitive)] > absent oneself
to turn awaya1400
absenta1425
to play truant1560
truant1580
to take (a) French leave1751
to trig it1796
to play hookey1848
submarine1915
to take off1930
bunk1949
a1425 (?a1400) G. Chaucer Romaunt Rose (Hunterian) (1891) l. 4911 Though for a tyme his herte absente, It may not fayle, he shal repente.
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) viii. l. 1281 A marchell gart absent Bot lordis.
1533 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1903) II. 146/10 Plesandlie to absent fra thare housis and wyiffis.
a1568 A. Scott Poems (1896) xxvii. 24 Will scho absent, Hyne sall I went.
1651 A. Weamys Contin. Sydney's Arcadia 145 She then absented from him, that she might work as effectual and sudden a cure upon aged Claius.
1681 R. Knox Hist. Relation Ceylon 137 Then we were bidden to absent, while they returned our answers to the King.
1709 in J. Strype Ann. Reformation xxix. 300 Many absented this afternoon, appearing neither in person nor proxy.
1773 Ann. Reg. 1772 75/2 The most celebrated advocates have absented, and no business can go on.
1826 Times 4 Jan. 3/2 A certain Pontini..frequently absented from the meetings.
1843 W. Nicholson Remains E. Grindal viii. 362 It was thought..the most likely way to reduce the offenders, and such as wholly absented from the church, to punish them in their purses.
1912 Y. Makino When I was Child xiii. 134 I absented from the school lessons—sometimes three days in a week.
1977 E. A. Ramaswamy Worker & His Union 151 In the 1967 [Indian] election more than a hundred TWU activists absented from work for over a week.
2004 Hindu (Nexis) 22 July They were taken in for work only about seven days a month when the regular workers absented from work.
b. transitive. To remove, dismiss; to keep away; to prevent from being present. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > be absent from [verb (transitive)] > cause to be absent
absent1425
1425 Rolls of Parl. IV. 268/2 To yeve in commaundement to both my said Lordes, Erles Mareschall and Warrewyk, to absent her presence oute of yis said high Court of Parlement.
a1450 (c1435) J. Lydgate Life SS. Edmund & Fremund (Harl.) l. 636 in C. Horstmann Altengl. Legenden (1881) 2nd Ser. 388 (MED) Kepte his chambre..From al peple his persone absentyng.
1548 E. Gest Treat. againste Masse sig. Bvii He meanethe not that Christes body is absented from hys supper.
a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) i. i. sig. B5v They absented his eyes from beholding the issue.
1652 Plea for Free State Ep. Ded. 2 The Author absents his name out of no other feare.
1678 A. Marvell Acct. Growth Popery (new ed.) 28 The other, the honester Fellow it seems of the two, only was absented.
1782 T. Jefferson Let. 20 May in Papers (1952) VI. 186 Which I am in hopes may be done without absenting him [sc. a servant] from your person.
1898 E. Singleton tr. A. Lavignac Music Dramas of Wagner iii. 90 The gallant poet..has been so long absented from the Wartburg by a mysterious destiny.
1906 Daily Chron. 13 Nov. 7/7 Large numbers of children are habitually absented by careless and vicious parents from the religious lesson.
2001 Rev. Contemp. Fiction (Nexis) 22 June 114 Her mother..absented her from school for periods so that she might not overtire her brain.
c. transitive (reflexive). To remove oneself; to withdraw; to keep oneself away.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > absent oneself [verb (reflexive)]
absenta1450
prolong1591
decline1641
a1450 (?c1421) J. Lydgate Siege Thebes (Arun.) (1911) 1118 (MED) The ton shal absent hym oute Fully that ȝeer.
1480 Cronicles Eng. (Caxton) cclxii. sig. y4v The quene with the prince was in the north and absented her from the kyng.
a1500 (?a1390) J. Mirk Festial (Gough) (1905) 149 (MED) He synneþe also gretly forto absent hym from Godys seruyce yn dew tyme.
1553 T. Wilson Arte of Rhetorique Prol. f. 12 Not onely absentyng your self from all company but also refusyng all kynde of comforte.
1604 W. Shakespeare Hamlet v. ii. 299 If thou did'st euer hold me in thy hart, Absent thee from felicity a while. View more context for this quotation
1642 J. March Argument Militia 17 It is enacted, that no Knight, Citizen, or Burges, absent himselfe..under the paine of the losse of their wages.
1728 J. Gay Beggar's Opera i. xii Then he flies, absents himself.
1786 T. Jefferson Writings (1859) II. 47 I..hope that I may be permitted at times to absent myself from this place.
1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. III. 378 The Club attempted to induce the advocates to absent themselves from the bar.
1895 ‘M. Twain’ in Harper's Mag. Aug. 458 The other inquisitor could absent himself and rest up from his fatigues when he got worn out.
1915 C. S. Churchill Let. 30 Dec. in W. S. Churchill & C. S. Churchill Speaking for Themselves (1999) vii. 141 McKenna absented himself from the War Council and sulked down at Munstead.
1946 L. P. Hartley Sixth Heaven iv. 95 You made a mistake..to absent yourself from the ‘rag’—it was a really good show.
2001 J. Hamilton-Paterson Loving Monsters vii. 114 Your time-sheet..shows you have consistently been absenting yourself from the office during work hours.
2. transitive. To depart from, quit, leave. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going away > go away from [verb (transitive)]
leaveeOE
beleavea1250
devoidc1325
voidc1330
roomc1400
wagc1400
departa1425
refusea1425
avoid1447
ishc1450
remove1459
absent1488
part1496
refrain1534
to turn the backc1540
quita1568
apart1574
shrink1594
to fall from ——1600
to draw away1616
to go off ——a1630
shifta1642
untenant1795
evacuate1809
exit1830
stash1888
split1956
1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) viii. l. 635 Wallace thaim chargyt hys presens till absent.
a1586 D. Steel Ring of Roy Robert l. 110 in W. A. Craigie Maitland Folio MS (1919) I. 130 Thow swoir in parliament Ingland ten ȝeiris thow suld absent.
1695 N. Luttrell Diary in Brief Hist. Relation State Affairs (1857) III. 520 Bills of high treason are found at the sessions against 23 persons, most Romanists, who have absented the kingdom.
1903 Amer. Law Reg. 51 196 An act of bankruptcy..was a fact necessary to be proved in every case to show the assignee's right to sue. One form was absenting the realm.
1988 T. Hoover Samurai Strategy 173 Upon which I absented his office, safety net in place.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
absentprep.
/ˈabs(ə)nt/, U.S. /ˈæbsənt/ Originally and chiefly U.S. Law.
In the absence of, without.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > with absence of (a thing) [preposition] > in a state of absence from (a person)
withoutc1385
absent1888
1888 Southwestern Reporter 8 898 If the deed had been made by a stranger to the wife, then a separate estate in her would not have been created, absent the necessary words.
1933 Columbia Law Rev. 33 1155 Absent any mathematical terminology, the general formula achieved in the New York statute has much to commend it.
1953 Federal Suppl. (U.S.) 107 527/2 Absent federal legislation upon the subject, states may, within limits of reasonableness, regulate the use of their highways.
1972 N.Y. Law Jrnl. 24 Oct. 5/3 Absent such an appeal, the constitutional issues were conclusively determined against Ender.
2006 Daily Tel. 17 Mar. 23/3 An Australian republic is not only not inevitable, but, absent some calamity, it will never come to pass.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
<
adj.n.a1325
v.a1425prep.1888