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dis·ap·pear (dĭs′ə-pîr)
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v. dis·ap·peared, dis·ap·pear·ing, dis·ap·pears
v.intr.
1. To pass out of sight; vanish: The moon disappeared behind the clouds.
2. To cease to be seen; be missing or unfound: Her purse disappeared from her locker. The plane disappeared somewhere over the Pacific Ocean.
3. To cease to exist: Dinosaurs disappeared at the end of the Cretaceous Period.
v.tr.
To cause (someone) to disappear, especially by kidnapping or murder.
dis′ap·pearance n.
Synonyms: disappear, evanesce, evaporate, fade, vanish
These verbs mean to pass out of sight or existence: a skyscraper disappearing in the fog; time seeming to evanesce; courage evaporating; memories fading away; hope slowly vanishing.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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