abduction

noun

ab·​duc·​tion ab-ˈdək-shən 

əb-

1

: the action of abducting : the condition of being abducted

2

archaic : the unlawful carrying away of a woman for marriage or sexual intercourse

Synonyms

• hijacking
• highjacking
• kidnapping
• kidnaping
• rape
• snatch [slang]

Examples of abduction in a Sentence

discredited reports of abductions by aliens

Recent Examples on the Web

Kate Okorie Forced out by insurgency In 2014, the same year that the abduction of nearly 300 girls from a school in Chibok in northern Nigeria grabbed international headlines, Mary Musa and her family were displaced from their community in Borno state by the Boko Haram militant group. —Kate Okorie, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 Oct. 2024

After the abduction and murder of Samsoe, Alcala's Los Angeles parole officer recognized a police sketch matching Alcala and advised authorities to look into him as a suspect. —Jessica Sager, People.com, 18 Oct. 2024

Last year, the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument, encompassing several locations in Chicago and Mississippi, was designated by President Joe Biden to memorialize the 14-year-old Black teen whose 1955 abduction and lynching would spark the modern civil rights movement. —Marc Ramirez, USA TODAY, 18 Sep. 2024

An Amber Alert, on the other hand, requires confirmation that an abduction has happened. —Marquise Francis, NBC News, 10 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Late Latin abdūctiōn-, abdūctiō "withdrawal, removal, allurement," from Latin abdūcere "to lead away" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of action nouns — more at abduct

First Known Use

1632, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Legal Definition

abduction

noun

ab·​duc·​tion ab-ˈdək-shən, əb- 

1

a

: the action of abducting

abduction of a robbery victim

b

: the tort or felony of abducting a person

2

: the unlawful carrying away of a wife or female child or ward for the purpose of marriage or sexual intercourse

Note: Sense 2 has its roots in common law. As statutorily defined, mainly in the nineteenth century, abduction was generally stated to include taking away or detention of a woman under a certain age, usually 16 or 18, with or without her consent or knowledge of her age.