decamp

[ dih-kamp ]

See synonyms for decamp on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)

to depart from a camp; to pack up equipment and leave a camping ground: We decamped before the rain began.
to depart quickly, secretly, or unceremoniously: The band of thieves decamped in the night.

Origin of decamp

1670–80; <French décamper, equivalent to dé-dis-¹ + camper to encamp; see camp¹

Other words from decamp

de·camp·ment, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use decamp in a sentence

The last Marine, Staff Sergeant Mark Mangio, decamped in March 2009.
Their Fight…But Our Legacy: The New Battle for Fallujah | John Kael Weston | January 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Even after Salinger had decamped to Cornish, he loved to lunch with William Shawn and Lillian Ross at the Algonquin in New York.
15 Revelations from New J.D. Salinger Biography | Andrew Romano | September 2, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
So Rice decamped to Turtle Bay, where she bided her time until Jones retired at the NSC.
Why Obama Betrayed Susan Rice | Peter Beinart | December 13, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Boycott herself decamped early on, smitten by an American visitor to London, John Steinbeck IV, son of the Nobelist in literature.
How the London Olympic Games Will Revolutionize Food | Katrina Heron | July 24, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
But what, exactly, did Olbermann think he was getting when he decamped MSNBC for this tiny channel?
Keith Olbermann’s Late-Night Offensive in His War Against Current TV | Howard Kurtz | April 4, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST

The rascals decamped, however, before they could reach the place, and the keepers dispersed to go to their several homes.
Dr. Jolliffe's Boys | Lewis Hough
Two men only of this respectable crowd brought what they had secured into the shop; the rest decamped with the booty.
Impressions And Comments | Havelock Ellis
Two of the eight decamped, at this juncture; making the odds six, instead of eight, to one.
Famous Privateersmen and Adventurers of the Sea | Charles H. L. Johnston
She informed me that she had made up her mind I had decamped from the island.
In Strange Company | Guy Boothby
To discover that Gussie had decamped did not add to her peace of mind.
Marjorie Dean, College Senior | Pauline Lester

British Dictionary definitions for decamp

decamp

/ (dɪˈkæmp) /

verb(intr)

to leave a camp; break camp
to depart secretly or suddenly; abscond

Derived forms of decamp

decampment, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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