Meaning & use
flee
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Meanings
verbtransitive or intransitive
To run or travel away quickly from danger, trouble or a place where you are not safe.
Grammar: With an object the place follows directly (flee the city); without one it takes 'from' or 'to' (flee from danger).
Patterns
- flee somewhere
- flee from something
- flee to somewhere
Thousands of residents fled the city before the storm arrived.
The thief fled when he heard the alarm.
Many families had to flee from the fighting and cross the border.
verbintransitiveliterary
To pass away or disappear quickly, said of feelings, time or hope.
Grammar: No object; the subject is something that vanishes: his courage fled.
Patterns
- something flees
As the exams approached, all her confidence seemed to flee.
The hours fled by while we talked on the porch.
The fear fled from his face when he saw her smile.
Word forms
| third person singular | flees |
|---|---|
| past tense | fled |
| past participle | fled |
| -ing form | fleeing |
Common combinations
- flee the country
- The minister fled the country after the scandal broke.
- flee for one's life
- They fled for their lives when the dam burst.
- flee the scene
- The driver fled the scene of the accident.
- flee to safety
- Villagers fled to safety in the hills.
- flee in terror
- The crowd fled in terror when the fireworks went off.
- flee from
- The deer fled from the sound of the gunshot.
Synonyms and how they differ
- escape
- 'Escape' stresses getting free from confinement or capture, while 'flee' stresses running from danger even if no one is holding you.
- bolt
- 'Bolt' is informal and describes a sudden, panicked dash, usually of an animal or person over a short distance.
- run away
- 'Run away' is the everyday phrasal verb and can be about avoiding a problem, whereas 'flee' is more serious and suggests real danger.
- take flight
- 'Take flight' is more literary and often describes birds or people scattering suddenly.
Opposites
Word family
- flight noun
- the act of fleeing, as in 'the flight of refugees'
- fleeing adjective
- running away, as in 'a fleeing suspect'
- fled verb
- the past tense and past participle of flee
Commonly confused: flee or flea? flee or fly?
flee vs flea
A 'flea' is a tiny jumping insect; it is pronounced the same as 'flee' but has no connection with running away.
flee vs fly
'Fly' means to travel through the air and its past tense is 'flew'; the past tense of 'flee' is 'fled', so the two verbs should not be swapped.
Practice
Thousands of residents had to ___ the city before the storm hit.
Choose one answer.
After 'had to' we need the base verb, so 'flee' is correct. 'Fled' is the past tense and 'fleed' does not exist.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “flee”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.