Hypertext Webster Gateway: "absence"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Absence \Ab"sence\, n. [F., fr. L. absentia. See {Absent}.]
1. A state of being absent or withdrawn from a place or from
companionship; -- opposed to {presence}.
Not as in my presence only, but now much more in my
absence. --Phil. ii.
12.
2. Want; destitution; withdrawal. ``In the absence of
conventional law.'' --Kent.
3. Inattention to things present; abstraction (of mind); as,
absence of mind. ``Reflecting on the little absences and
distractions of mankind.'' --Addison.
To conquer that abstraction which is called absence.
--Landor.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
absence
n 1: the state of being absent; "he was surprised by the absence
of any explanation" [ant: {presence}]
2: failure to be present [ant: {presence}]
3: the time interval during which something or somebody is
away; "he visited during my absence"
4: epilepsy characterized by paroxysmal attacks of brief
clouding of consciousness (a possible other abnormalities)
[syn: {petit mal epilepsy}]
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