# abandon

> English word · Verb · IPA /əˈbæn.dən/ · frequency rank #6,856

## Definitions
1. To give up or relinquish control of, to surrender or to give oneself over, or to yield to one's emotions.
2. To desist in doing, practicing, following, holding, or adhering to; to turn away from; to permit to lapse; to renounce; to discontinue.
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. To subdue; to take control of.
5. To cast out; to banish; to expel; to reject.
6. To no longer exercise a right, title, or interest, especially with no interest of reclaiming it again; to yield; to relinquish.
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.

## Easily confused with
- **Abingdon** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/abandon-vs-abingdon)
- **abandoned** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/abandon-vs-abandoned)

## Common misspellings (10)
`aabndon`, `abadnon`, `abanddon`, `abandno`, `abandonn`, `abanndon`, `abanodn`, `abbandon`, `abnadon`, `baandon`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/abandon