Meaning & use
abandoned
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Meanings
adjectivenot comparable
Left behind or deserted, with no one caring for it and no plan to return.
Grammar: Usually not gradable: say an abandoned house, not more abandoned.
Patterns
- an abandoned building
- abandoned by someone
- abandoned children or pets
They explored an abandoned factory near the river.
The shelter cares for abandoned cats until they are adopted.
She felt abandoned when her friends moved away.
adjectivenot comparableliteraryrare
Wild and unrestrained, especially in a way that shocks people.
Grammar: A literary use of the past participle; modern everyday English prefers uncontrolled.
Patterns
- abandoned laughter
- abandoned behavior
The novel describes abandoned laughter echoing through the hall.
Critics condemned the character's abandoned behavior.
Common combinations
- abandoned building
- An abandoned building still stands at the end of the street.
- abandoned car
- The police towed the abandoned car from the lot.
- abandoned child
- A charity supports every abandoned child in the region.
- feel abandoned
- After the move, he felt abandoned by his old teammates.
- abandoned by
- The garden was abandoned by its owners years ago.
Synonyms and how they differ
- deserted
- A deserted place is empty, but abandoned stresses that people deliberately left it with no plan to return.
- forsaken
- More literary and emotional; suggests being left helpless and unloved rather than simply vacant.
- neglected
- Means not cared for over time; it does not necessarily mean the owner left forever.
Opposites
Word family
- abandon verb
- To leave permanently or give up completely.
- abandonment noun
- The act or state of being abandoned.
Commonly confused: abandoned or empty? abandoned or abandoning?
abandoned vs empty
Empty only says no one is present; abandoned adds that someone chose to leave without intending to return.
abandoned vs abandoning
Abandoning is the ongoing -ing form of the verb; abandoned is the past form or adjective.
Practice
The old theater has been ___ since the fire ten years ago.
Choose one answer.
After has been, use the past participle/adjective abandoned. Abandoning needs an ongoing action, abandonment is a noun, and abandon is the base verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “abandoned”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.