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abduct

 - 6 dictionary results

ab⋅duct

  [ab-duhkt]
Use abduct in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to carry off or lead away (a person) illegally and in secret or by force, esp. to kidnap.
2. Physiology. to move or draw away from the axis of the body or limb (opposed to adduct ).
Origin:
1825–35; < L abductus, ptp. of abdūcere to abduce
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To abduct
ab·duct   (āb-dŭkt')   
tr.v.   ab·duct·ed, ab·duct·ing, ab·ducts

  1. To carry off by force; kidnap.

  2. Physiology To draw away from the midline of the body or from an adjacent part or limb.


[Latin abdūcere, abduct- : ab-, away; see ab-1 + dūcere, to lead; see deuk- in Indo-European roots.]
ab·duct·ee' n., ab·duc'tion n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

abduct 
"to kidnap," 1834, altered from abduce "to draw away" by persuasion (1537), from L. abducere "lead away," from ab- "away" + ducere "to lead" (see duke). Abduction is first recorded 1626 in lit. sense of "a leading away;" the illegal activity so called from 1768. In the Mercian hymns, L. abductione is glossed by O.E. wiðlaednisse.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: ab·duct
Pronunciation: ab-'d&kt, &b-
Function: transitive verb
: to carry or lead (a person) away by threat or use of force or often by fraud; also : to restrain or conceal (a person) for the purpose of preventing escape or rescue —see also KIDNAPPING —ab·duc·tor /-'d&k-t&r/ noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: ab·duct
Pronunciation: ab-'d&kt, &b- also 'ab-"
Function: transitive verb
: to draw away (as a limb) from a position nearor parallel to the median axis of the body abducts, and everts the foot —C. R. Bardeen>; also : to move (similar parts) apart<abduct adjoining fingers> —ab·duc·tion /ab-'d&k-sh&n, &b-/ noun
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

abduct ab·duct (āb-dŭkt')
v. ab·duct·ed, ab·duct·ing, ab·ducts
To draw away from the midline of the body or from an adjacent part or limb.

ab·duc'tion n.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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