I. ab ‧ sent 1 /ˈæbs ə nt/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: Latin , present participle of abesse , from ab- 'away' + esse 'to be' ]
1 . not at work, school, a meeting etc, because you are sick or decide not to go OPP present
absent from
students who are regularly absent from school
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In everyday English, if someone is on holiday or on a business trip, people usually say that he/she is away :
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He's away at the moment. He’s gone to Hawaii.
If you want to say that someone is not in a particular place, say not there :
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I called in to see her but she wasn't there.
If you want to say that someone is not with you, say not here :
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I'm afraid he's not here at the moment. Can I take a message?
2 . if someone or something is absent, they are missing or not in the place where they are expected to be
absent parent/father
plans to force absent fathers to pay child maintenance
absent from
Local women were conspicuously absent (=obviously not there) from the meeting.
3 . [only before noun] a look etc that is absent shows you are not paying attention to or thinking about what is happening ⇨ absently :
The dull, absent look on her face implied boredom.
II. ab ‧ sent 2 /əbˈsent, æb- $ æb-/ BrE AmE verb [transitive] formal
absent yourself (from something) to not go to a place or take part in an event where people expect you to be