abduct
verb
Simple meaning
Take away to an undisclosed location against their will and usually to extract a ransom.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
abduhktSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
æbˈdʌkt
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
Take away to an undisclosed location against their will and usually in order to extract a ransom
transitive
To take away by force; to carry away (a human being) wrongfully and usually with violence or deception; to kidnap.
Pull away from the body
transitiveanatomy
To draw away, as a limb or other part, from the median axis of the body.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Rare
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Take away to an undisclosed location against their will and usually in order to extract a ransom
To 'abduct' means to illegally take someone away by force, often with criminal intent like ransom or sexual assault. It's a serious term used in legal and journalistic contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where you'll really hear it
News reports
“Police believe the suspect planned to abduct the child.”
Crime documentaries
“The gang attempted to abduct the wealthy businessman.”
Legal proceedings
“He faced charges for attempting to abduct his former spouse.”
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
Share your sentence
Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
The criminal act of capturing and carrying away by force a family member.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
- rapeverb
- kidnappingnoun
- abductionnoun
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Keep learning “abduct” by choosing the kind of practice you need next.
- Practice sentence writingWrite sentences with vocabulary and get instant feedback.
- Practice in contextAnswer short vocabulary questions drawn from real situations.
- Review vocabularyTest your recall and strengthen words over time.
- Practice typingType vocabulary in short rounds that draw from words you've learned and saved.
Want to type words like this one without looking at the keyboard? Each typing round draws from words you've learned, saved or need to review. Follow the free Learn to Type lessons and type your own vocabulary with confidence.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.