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Meaning & use

absent without leave

phrase, adjective·Advancedmilitary

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UK/ˌæbsənt wɪðˈaʊt liːv/
US/ˌæbsənt wɪðˈaʊt liːv/

Meanings

  1. phrasefixed phrasemilitary

    Away from duty in the armed forces without permission, especially for a long or repeated time.

    Grammar: Used after be or go: soldiers can be absent without leave or go absent without leave.

    Patterns

    • be absent without leave
    • go absent without leave
    • absent without leave from a unit

    Three soldiers were absent without leave for more than a week and faced a court-martial.

    He went absent without leave after his unit was posted overseas.

    Anyone absent without leave for thirty days may be officially listed as a deserter.

  2. adjectivebefore a nounmilitary

    Used before a noun to describe a person who has left duty without permission.

    Grammar: Comes before the noun it describes, as in an absent-without-leave soldier; hyphens are common in this position.

    Patterns

    • an absent without leave soldier
    • an absent-without-leave charge

    The unit reported two absent-without-leave cases that month.

    An absent without leave charge can end a military career.

  3. phrasefixed phrasehumorousinformal

    Informal or humorous use for someone who has failed to appear where they were expected.

    Grammar: Often used jokingly about a missing person or thing, not in official military writing.

    Patterns

    • be absent without leave from something

    The office cat has been absent without leave since Tuesday.

    My umbrella has gone absent without leave again.

Common combinations

go absent without leave
Several recruits went absent without leave during the training exercise.
be charged with being absent without leave
He was charged with being absent without leave after missing two roll calls.
absent without leave from a unit
She was absent without leave from her unit for three days.
an absent without leave charge
The report lists an absent without leave charge against him.
absent without leave status
After a week, his file was marked absent without leave status.

Synonyms and how they differ

AWOL
The short military abbreviation of the same phrase; it is more common in speech and headlines, but avoid it in formal legal documents.
desertion
A much more serious legal offense: a deserter intends to leave the armed forces permanently, while someone absent without leave may plan to return.
truant
Used mainly of schoolchildren who skip school, so it does not fit military or workplace contexts.

Opposites

present for dutyon duty

Word family

absence noun
The state of not being somewhere you are expected to be.
absent adjective
Not present in the usual place.
leave noun
Official permission to be away from duty, as in shore leave.

Commonly confused: absent without leave or AWOL? absent without leave or absence without leave?

absent without leave vs AWOL

AWOL is just the abbreviation of this phrase and means the same thing; use the full phrase in formal writing and AWOL in casual or journalistic use.

absent without leave vs absence without leave

This is a rare variant with the same meaning; the standard fixed phrase uses the adjective absent.

Practice

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