ABSENCE | Meaning, Definition In Cambridge English Dictionary

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Meaning of absence in English absencenoun uk /ˈæb.səns/ us /ˈæb.səns/

absence noun (NOT BEING PRESENT)

Add to word list Add to word list B2 [ U or C ] the fact of not being where you are usually expected to be: during someone's absence A new manager was appointed during her absence.in someone's absence I'll be gone for two weeks, with Chris handling the deliveries in my absence. She has had repeated absences from work this year.
  • The smell of cigarette smoke confirmed what he had suspected: there had been a party in his absence.
  • I'm deputizing for the director during his absence.
  • Unbeknownst to me, he'd gone and rented out the apartment in my absence.
  • Can you account for your absence last Friday?
  • Her absence from the meeting changed the dynamic in the room.
Absent
  • absent
  • absent without leave
  • absentee
  • absenteeism
  • anywhere
  • AWOL
  • go AWOL idiom
  • in absentia
  • in someone's absence
  • in the absence of someone/something
  • lacuna
  • missing
  • negative
  • non-attendance
  • non-attender
  • not anywhere to be found idiom
  • nowhere
  • nowhere to be found idiom
  • station
  • unrepresented
See more results »

absence noun (NOT EXISTING)

B2 [ U ] the fact of not existing: He drew attention to the absence of concrete evidence against the defendant.in the absence of In the absence of (= because there were not) more suitable candidates, we decided to offer the job to Mr Conway.
  • In the absence of anything better, the settee would serve as a bed for a couple of nights.
  • In our search for evidence, we were stymied by the absence of any recent documents.
  • They complained about the absence of vegetarian food on the menu.
  • In the absence of a strong government, the country soon fell into chaos.
  • In the absence of a television, the children were forced to find other things to keep them amused.
Non-existence and not being
  • absent
  • aren't
  • become extinct
  • defunct
  • die
  • die out phrasal verb
  • disappear
  • extinct
  • extinguishment
  • negation
  • non-being
  • non-body
  • non-existent
  • non-extant
  • passenger pigeon
  • presence
  • seronegative
  • such
  • there's no such thing/person (as) idiom
  • unfulfilled
See more results »

Idiom

absence makes the heart grow fonder (Definition of absence from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

absence | American Dictionary

absencenoun [ C/U ] us /ˈæb·səns/ Add to word list Add to word list the state of not being somewhere, or a period in which you are not somewhere: [ C ] She has had repeated absences from school this year. An absence can also be a lack of existence: [ U ] He drew attention to the absence of any solid evidence against the defendant.

absent

adjective [ not gradable ] us /ˈæb·sənt/ If Callie is absent from school, she should bring a note from home.

absently

adverb us /ˈæb·sənt·li/ He stared out the window, absently rubbing his cheek. (Definition of absence from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

absence | Business English

absencenoun uk /ˈæbsəns/ us Add to word list Add to word list [ C or U ]   HR a time when someone is not at work or at the place they are expected to be: absence from sth Her absence from the meeting was noted.in sb's absence His fellow directors voted in his absence to fire him. The worst day for workplace absences is Monday. [ U ] the fact that something is not where it is needed or expected: The business was suffering from an absence of an overall plan for moving forward.in the absence of sth In the absence of any alternative, we'll continue in the same way as before.

See also

leave of absence (Definition of absence from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of absence

absence A most valuable feature of this book is its frankness about these absences. From the Cambridge English Corpus After the second cleaning operation and closure no further school absences occurred, although three pupils reported symptoms on day 22. From the Cambridge English Corpus The legacy for the family was thus one of silence and denial around out-ofcontrol behavior and around long, unexplained absences. From the Cambridge English Corpus The significant absences of ticks from certain mammal species lends further support to the concept of host specificity. From the Cambridge English Corpus All absences, whatever the reason, were punished by fines and the withholding of wages. From the Cambridge English Corpus Another pragmatic delegation example was the redistribution of a case-load in order to even out work-load or cover absences. From the Cambridge English Corpus Like all absences, this one is difficult to grasp. From the Cambridge English Corpus Unemployment is an important source for these absences - one over which the worker has limited control. From the Cambridge English Corpus The sound is itself crystalline, marked by glassy absences and pinprick flashpoints. From the Cambridge English Corpus Both are and is absences are more likely to follow pronouns than noun phrases. From the Cambridge English Corpus Such absences were very rare, and a full investigation seemed likely to add only a few names to the enumeration. From the Cambridge English Corpus We must read her story through its significant absences, and learn to hear her history being spoken through silence. From the Cambridge English Corpus One of the values of comparison is to reveal absences. From the Cambridge English Corpus Where sickness certification records did not match with self-reported absences, the electronic consultation record was examined to look for certification recording. From the Cambridge English Corpus Overall, 95% of the electronic medical records of sickness certification matched with self-reported absences; 96% in employed consulters and 95% in unemployed consulters. From the Cambridge English Corpus See all examples of absence These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with absence

absence

These are words often used in combination with absence.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

absence of accountabilityThe absence of accountability, then, became the norm rather than exception. From the Cambridge English Corpus absence of dataHowever, in the absence of data, this was a necessary exercise. From the Cambridge English Corpus absence of evidenceAbsence of evidence is not evidence of absence. From the Cambridge English Corpus These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors. See all collocations with absence What is the pronunciation of absence?

Translations of absence

in Chinese (Traditional) 不在場的, 缺席, 缺勤… See more in Chinese (Simplified) 不在场的, 缺席, 缺勤… See more in Spanish ausencia, ausencia [feminine], ausencia de [feminine]… See more in Portuguese ausência, falta, ausência [feminine]… See more in Marathi in Japanese in Turkish in French in Catalan in Dutch in Tamil in Hindi in Gujarati in Danish in Swedish in Malay in German in Norwegian in Urdu in Ukrainian in Telugu in Bengali in Czech in Indonesian in Thai in Vietnamese in Polish in Korean in Italian गैरहजर, अनुपस्थिती, अभाव… See more 留守, 不在, 欠席… See more yok olan, mevcut olmayan, yok olma… See more absence [feminine], manque [masculine], défaut [masculine]… See more absència, manca… See more afwezigheid, gebrek… See more நீங்கள் வழக்கமாக இருக்கும் என்று எதிர்பார்க்கப்படும் இடத்தில் இல்லை என்ற உண்மை, இல்லை என்ற உண்மை… See more अनुपस्थिति, अभाव… See more અનુપસ્થિતિ, ગેરહાજરી, અભાવ… See more fravær, fraværelse, mangel… See more frånvaro, bortovaro, avsaknad… See more ketidakhadiran, tidak ada, ketiadaan… See more die Abwesenheit… See more fravær [neuter], fravær… See more غیر موجودگی, غیر حاضر, عدم موجودگی… See more відсутність, відлучитися, бути відсутнім… See more ఎప్పుడూ ఉంటారనుకునే చోట ఉండకపోవడం, ఉండకపోవడం, గైరుహాజరీ… See more অনুপস্থিত, যেখানে ভাবা হয়েছিল সেখানে নেই এমন, বিদ্যমান নেই এমন… See more absence, nepřítomnost, nedostatek… See more ketidakhadiran, tidak ada, tidak adanya… See more การขาด, การไม่อยู่, การขาดแคลน… See more sự vắng mặt, thiếu… See more nieobecność, brak… See more 결석, 부재… See more assenza, mancanza… See more Need a translator?

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abseil abseil down something abseiled abseiling absence absence makes the heart grow fonder idiom absent absent without leave absent-minded {{#randomImageQuizHook.filename}} {{#randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} Test your vocabulary with our fun image quizzes Try a quiz now {{/randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{^randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{/randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{/randomImageQuizHook.filename}}

More meanings of absence

  • leave of absence
  • in someone's absence
  • during someone's absence
  • in the absence of someone/something
  • leave of absence phrase
  • leave of absence
  • be conspicuous by your absence idiom
See all meanings
  • leave of absence phrase
  • be conspicuous by your absence idiom
  • absence makes the heart grow fonder idiom
See all idioms and phrases

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in a difficult situation or in a worse situation than other people

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  • English   
    • Noun 
      • absence (NOT BEING PRESENT)
      • absence (NOT EXISTING)
  • American   
    • Noun 
      • absence
    • Adjective 
      • absent
    • Adverb 
      • absently
  • Business   Noun
  • Examples
  • Collocations
  • Translations
  • Grammar
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