abandon

/əˈbæn.dən/

//əˈbæn.dən// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"abandon" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“abandon” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #6,856 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#6,856
frequency rank, English
7
letters
10
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To give up or relinquish control of, to surrender or to give oneself over, or to yield to one's emotions.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

abandon vs Abingdon
63% similar
abandon vs abandoned
78% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for abandon
PropertyValue
Headwordabandon
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/əˈbæn.dən/
Letters7
Frequency rank#6,856
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “abandon” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). abandon lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for abandon is 7 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /əˈbæn.dən/. Corpus data places it at rank #6,856 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for abandon, with forms such as "aabndon", "abadnon", and "abanddon". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "Abingdon", "abandoned", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English abandounen, from Old French abandoner, formed from a (“at, to”) + bandon (“jurisdiction, control”), from Late Latin bannum (“proclamation”), bannus, bandum, from Frankish *ban, *bann, from Proto-Germanic *bannaną (“to proclaim, command”)… The correct English form is abandon, spelled A-B-A-N-D-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    To give up or relinquish control of, to surrender or to give oneself over, or to yield to one's emotions.
  2. 2
    To desist in doing, practicing, following, holding, or adhering to; to turn away from; to permit to lapse; to renounce; to discontinue.
  3. 3
    To leave behind; to desert, as in a ship, a position, or a person, typically in response to overwhelming odds or impending dangers; to forsake, in spite of a duty or responsibility.
  4. 4
    To subdue; to take control of.
  5. 5
    To cast out; to banish; to expel; to reject.
  6. 6
    To no longer exercise a right, title, or interest, especially with no interest of reclaiming it again; to yield; to relinquish.
  7. 7
    To surrender to the insurer (an insured item), so as to claim a total loss.

Etymology

From Middle English abandounen, from Old French abandoner, formed from a (“at, to”) + bandon (“jurisdiction, control”), from Late Latin bannum (“proclamation”), bannus, bandum, from Frankish *ban, *bann, from Proto-Germanic *bannaną (“to proclaim, command”) (whence English ban), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- (“to speak”). See also ban, banal. Displaced Middle English forleten (“to abandon”), from Old English forlǣtan, anforlǣtan; see forlet; and Middle English forleven (“to leave behind, abandon”), from Old English forlǣfan; see forleave.

Synonyms

abdicateabjureblincast asideceasecededeliver updepart fromdesertdesist fromdiscontinuedispense withdropforgoforletforsakeforsweargive upjiltleave behindpart withquitrecantrelinquishrenouncerepudiateresignretireretractrun out onsurrendervacatewaivewithdraw fromwithsakeyieldabandonbeleavebug out

Antonyms

acquireadoptadvocatearrogatecherishclaimdefendembraceengagegainholdjoinkeepmaintainoccupyprotectretainundertakeuniteupholdvindicatehold the fortstand one's ground

This word in other languages

renunciar(Español)abandonner(Français)aufgeben(Deutsch)abandonar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: aabndon,abadnon,abanddon,abandno,abandonn,abanndon,abanodn,abbandon,abnadon,baandon

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of abandon - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

aabndon2abadnon2abanddon1abandno2abandonn1abanndon1abanodn2abbandon1
Edit distance from "abandon"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "abandon"?
"abandon" is spelled A-B-A-N-D-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈbæn.dən/.
What does "abandon" mean?
As a verb, "abandon" means: To give up or relinquish control of, to surrender or to give oneself over, or to yield to one's emotions.
What words are commonly confused with "abandon"?
"abandon" is commonly confused with "Abingdon", "abandoned". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "abandon"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "abandon" is /əˈbæn.dən/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "abandon"?
From Middle English abandounen, from Old French abandoner, formed from a (“at, to”) + bandon (“jurisdiction, control”), from Late Latin bannum (“proclamation”), bannus, bandum, from Frankish *ban, *bann, from Proto-Germanic *bannaną (“to proclaim,... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “abandon”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is A-B-A-N-D-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /əˈbæn.dən/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Abingdon” - see the side-by-side comparison. abandon vs Abingdon
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list