• Dictionary
  • List of exercises
  • Exercises by level

Meaning of escape in English

  1. Pronunciation

    /əˈskeɪp/

    US accent Play buttonYour browser does not support the audio element.

    How to pronounce escape in American English, in context ▾
    Use the controls below Controls button to browse different examples of pronunciation.

    UK accent Play buttonYour browser does not support the audio element.

    How to pronounce escape in British English, in context ▾
    Use the controls below Controls button to browse different examples of pronunciation.
  1. Verb

    escape

    Etymology

    Middle English: from Old French eschaper, based on medieval Latin ex-‘out’ + cappa‘cloak’. Compare with escapade

    Definitions

    1. run away from confinement

    Examples

    • « The convicted murderer escaped from a high security prison »
  2. 2. fail to experience

    Examples

    • « Fortunately, I missed the hurricane »
  3. 3. escape potentially unpleasant consequences

    Examples

    • « get away with a forbidden action »
    • « She gets away with murder! »
    • « I couldn't get out from under these responsibilities »
  4. 4. be incomprehensible to

    Examples

    • « escape understanding by »
    • « What you are seeing in him eludes me »
  5. 5. issue or leak, as from a small opening

    Examples

    • « Gas escaped into the bedroom »
  6. 6. remove oneself from a familiar environment, usually for pleasure or diversion

    Examples

    • « We escaped to our summer house for a few days »
    • « The president of the company never manages to get away during the summer »
  7. 7. flee

    Examples

    • « take to one's heels »
    • « cut and run »
    • « If you see this man, run! »
    • « The burglars escaped before the police showed up »
  8. Noun

    escape

    Definitions

    1. the act of escaping physically

    Examples

    • « he made his escape from the mental hospital »
    • « the canary escaped from its cage »
    • « his flight was an indication of his guilt »
  9. 2. an inclination to retreat from unpleasant realities through diversion or fantasy

    Examples

    • « romantic novels were her escape from the stress of daily life »
    • « his alcohol problem was a form of escapism »
  10. 3. the unwanted discharge of a fluid from some container

    Examples

    • « they tried to stop the escape of gas from the damaged pipe »
    • « he had to clean up the leak »
  11. 4. a valve in a container in which pressure can build up (as a steam boiler)

    Examples

    • « it opens automatically when the pressure reaches a dangerous level »
  12. 5. nonperformance of something distasteful (as by deceit or trickery) that you are supposed to do

    Examples

    • « his evasion of his clear duty was reprehensible »
    • « that escape from the consequences is possible but unattractive »
  13. 6. an avoidance of danger or difficulty

    Examples

    • « that was a narrow escape »
  14. 7. a means or way of escaping

    Examples

    • « hard work was his escape from worry »
    • « they installed a second hatch as an escape »
    • « their escape route »
  15. 8. a plant originally cultivated but now growing wild

Navigation

    Books Teacher Resources About Contact

Lessons

    Beginner Intermediate Advanced
© 2021, NAGEL PTY LTD 🇦🇺 • Terms • Privacy