R. Fleming H. Revell | M. Murray's New English Dictionary
F. & W. CO. Funk & Wagnalls Co. | MACM. Macmillan & Co.
G. German | S. Chas. Scribner's Sons
Gr. Greek | Sp. Spanish
H. Harper & Bros. | T. & F. Ticknor & Fields
H. M. & CO. Houghton, Mifflin & Co. | T. & H. Troutman & Hayes
It. Italian | T. & M. Taylor, Walton & Maberley
J. M. John Murray | W. J. W. W. J. Widdleton

PART I.

SYNONYMS, ANTONYMS AND PREPOSITIONS.

* * * * *

ABANDON.

Synonyms:

abdicate, desert, leave, resign,
abjure, discontinue, quit, retire from,
cast off, forego, recant, retract,
cease, forsake, relinquish, surrender,
cede, forswear, renounce, vacate,
depart from, give up, repudiate, withdraw from.

_Abandon_ is a word of wide signification, applying to persons or things
of any kind; _abdicate_ and _resign_ apply to office, authority, or
power; _cede_ to territorial possessions; _surrender_ especially to
military force, and more generally to any demand, claim, passion, etc.
_Quit_ carries an idea of suddenness or abruptness not necessarily
implied in _abandon_, and may not have the same suggestion of finality.
The king _abdicates_ his throne, _cedes_ his territory, _deserts_ his
followers, _renounces_ his religion, _relinquishes_ his titles,
_abandons_ his designs. A cowardly officer _deserts_ his ship; the
helpless passengers _abandon_ it. We _quit_ business, _give up_
property, _resign_ office, _abandon_ a habit or a trust. _Relinquish_
commonly implies reluctance; the fainting hand _relinquishes_ its grasp;
the creditor _relinquishes_ his claim. _Abandon_ implies previous
association with responsibility for or control of; _forsake_ implies
previous association with inclination or attachment, real or assumed; a
man may _abandon_ or _forsake_ house or friends; he _abandons_ an
enterprise; _forsakes_ God. _Abandon_ is applied to both good and evil
action; a thief _abandons_ his designs, a man his principles. _Forsake_,
like _abandon_, may be used either in the favorable or unfavorable
sense; _desert_ is always unfavorable, involving a breach of duty,
except when used of mere localities;