Meaning & use
abetted
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“abetted” is a form of “abet”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
verbtransitivelegaldisapproving
Helped, encouraged, or supported someone in doing something wrong, especially committing a crime.
Grammar: Past tense and past participle; takes an object and is common in the fixed phrase aided and abetted.
Patterns
- abetted someone in something
- abetted someone in doing something
- aided and abetted someone
- be abetted by someone
The cashier abetted the fraud by approving false invoices.
Investigators believed the escape had been abetted by an insider.
He admitted he had abetted his friend in cheating the system.
Word forms
| third person singular | abets |
|---|---|
| past tense | abetted |
| past participle | abetted |
| -ing form | abetting |
Common combinations
- aided and abetted
- The two were accused of fraud; one acted and the other aided and abetted.
- abetted someone in a crime
- She abetted her colleague in a crime by deleting records.
- actively abetted
- He did not merely know; he actively abetted the plan.
- willingly abetted
- No one willingly abetted the scheme without expecting payment.
Synonyms and how they differ
- helped
- Neutral assistance; abetted specifically implies help toward wrongdoing or crime.
- encouraged
- Gave confidence or support; it need not involve practical help or illegality.
- incited
- Urged strongly toward an action, often suddenly; abetted can include quieter assistance.
- facilitated
- Made an action easier; it can be neutral, while abetting is normally culpable.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: abetted or abated? abetted or bated?
abetted vs abated
Abated means became less intense; abetted means helped wrongdoing.
abetted vs bated
Bated appears in with bated breath, meaning restrained; it is unrelated to abetted.
Practice
By the time police arrived, the manager had ___ the scheme.
Choose one answer.
After had, use the past participle abetted; abated means reduced, abet is the base form, and abetting would need was or kept.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “abetted”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.