Pronunciation: ' ā - ˌ wo ̇ l, ˌ ā - ˌ d ə -b ə l-yu ̇ - ˌ ō - ' el
Function: adjective or adverb
Usage: sometimes not cap
Etymology: a bsent w ith o ut l eave
Date: 1918
: ABSENT WITHOUT LEAVE broadly : absent often without notice or permission <the place looked as if its caretaker had been AWOL for some time ― Daniel Ford>