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Society, Law & Politics - Leaving or Escaping

Discover how English idioms like "the bird has flown" and "do a moonlight flit" relate to leaving or escaping in English.

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English idioms related to Society, Law & Politics
to [take] to {one's} heels

to begin to leave somewhere by running fast

Ex: As soon as he realized he had been caught, he took to his heels.
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the bird has flown

said to mean that a person that one looks for has fled or left

Ex: They raided the apartment at dawn, but the bird had flown.
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AWOL
AWOL
[Adjective]

(of a soldier) having left one's military duty without being permitted to do so

Ex: Commanders were furious when they learned he had gone AWOL.
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to [go] south
to go south
[phrase]

to depart or leave a place, often with the intention of avoiding a difficult or uncomfortable situation

Ex: As soon as the tension rose, she went south without saying a word.
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on the run
on the run
[phrase]

moving from one place to another in an attempt to not get caught or arrested

Ex: The criminal has been on the run since the robbery last month.
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to [go] to ground

to suddenly disappear from sight, particularly in order to hide from someone

Ex: The spy went to ground after his cover was blown.
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to [give] {sb} the slip

to escape in order to not get caught or not to be with someone

Ex: The fugitive gave the guards the slip and vanished into the woods.
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to [bust] a move

to leave somewhere, often hastily

Ex: It's getting late, so I'm going to bust a move.
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to [make] a move

to start to leave a place to get to somewhere else

Ex: Come on, make a movewe still have a long drive ahead.
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in the wind
in the wind
[phrase]

running away in an attempt not to get caught

Ex: They took the documents in the wind, leaving no trace behind.
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into thin air

used to refer to a someone or something that suddenly disappears, particularly in a way that is mysterious or suspicious

Ex: She walked out of the restaurant and vanished into thin air.
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(disappearing|vanishing) act

an instance of someone becoming impossible to find, particularly when they are needed, wanted, or in a difficult or unpleasant situation

Ex: The contractor took our deposit and then pulled a vanishing act.
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to [do] a moonlight flit

to leave a place secretly and as fast as one can, particularly in order to avoid paying one's debts

Ex: He did a moonlight flit after maxing out every credit card he had.
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to [go] over the wall

to manage to escape from a prison

Ex: Anyone who went over the wall was hunted for days.
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