flee

[ flee ]

/ fli /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR flee ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), fled [fled], /flɛd/, flee·ing.

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

to move swiftly; fly; speed.

verb (used with object), fled, flee·ing.

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

Origin of flee

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”; see also fly¹

SYNONYMS FOR flee

3 evade, escape, avoid, shun, elude.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR flee ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM flee

outflee, verb (used with object), out·fled, out·flee·ing.un·flee·ing, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH flee

flea, flee

Words nearby flee

Fledermaus, Die, fledge, fledged, fledgling, fledgy, flee, fleece, fleeced, fleece-vine, fleecie, fleecy

Dictionary.com UnabridgedBased on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for flee

Many more illegal migrants face labor trafficking in Europe as they flee the conflict regions of North Africa and the Middle East.
ISIS, Boko Haram, and the Growing Role of Human Trafficking in 21st Century Terrorism|Louise I. Shelley|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
As a cafe in Sydney, Australia came under siege by a hostage-taking gunman on Monday, those nearby attempted to flee the area.
In Defense of Uber’s Awful Sydney Surge Pricing|Olivia Nuzzi|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But, in Jamaica, Maurice Tomlinson was forced to flee his country after his marriage to his Canadian husband made front-page news.
A Quorum For Change: The Fight For Global LGBT Equality|Justin Jones|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Within two years, fighting was so bad, she was forced to flee.
Death Metal Angola: Heavy Metal in War-Torn Africa|Nina Strochlic|November 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST

In October, demonstrators—some violent—forced the longtime president to flee the country, leaving it under military rule.
An African Dictatorship’s Friend in D.C.|Center for Public Integrity|November 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Linkin ses "they are like to Paddy's flee, when you git where they are they ain't ther."
Letters of Major Jack Downing, of the Downingville Militia|Seba Smith
And then, you have always been all powerful, and never had to give over your plans and flee.
The Voodoo Gold Trail|Walter Walden
When we are persecuted in one city Scripture advises us to flee to another.
The Fugitives|R.M. Ballantyne
But there was one of all that gang who did not flee, and that was the valiant hound.
Frontier Boys in Frisco|Wyn Roosevelt
Though of brave spirit, they feared, and could but flee before, the anger of the law.
The Fifth of November|Charles S. Bentley

British Dictionary definitions for flee (1 of 2)

flee¹

/ (fliː) /

verb flees, fleeing or fled

to run away from (a place, danger, etc); flyto flee the country

(intr) to run or move quickly; rush; speedshe fled to the door

Derived forms of flee

fleer, noun

Word Origin for flee

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

British Dictionary definitions for flee (2 of 2)

flee²