as in to kidnap
to carry away (as a person) forcibly or unlawfully the gangsters planned to abduct the industrialist's young daughter and demand a huge ransom from her family

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of abduct They were printed in tiny letters, 339 in all, each representing a child abducted from the war zone in Ukraine and, according to authorities in Kyiv, forcibly taken to Russia. Simon Shuster, Time, 17 July 2025 Naturally, while bickering on the phone with each other, both encounter not only ghosts that curse people but also aliens trying to rebuild their race by abducting Earth women. Ollie Barder, Forbes.com, 13 July 2025 The Israeli military said a soldier was killed in Khan Younis the day before, after fighters burst out of an underground tunnel and tried to abduct him. Wafaa Shurafa, Chicago Tribune, 10 July 2025 Also Thursday, the military said an Israeli soldier was killed in Khan Yunis the day before, after militants burst out of an underground tunnel and tried to abduct him. Wafaa Shurafa, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for abduct
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abduct
kidnap
Verb
  • Advertisement Advertisement In the movie, Papa Smurf (John Goodman) is kidnapped, and No Name Smurf and the one female Smurfette (Rihanna) are on a mission to rescue him from the clutches of evil wizards.
    Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 18 July 2025
  • As the show went on, that family grew to include Carter's new friends, surprise siblings, and eventually even the woman who kidnapped her.
    EW Staff Published, EW.com, 16 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Abduct.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abduct. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.

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