Hi, I’m Marc Franco,
and this is Word of the Week with Snap Language.
abscond / æbˈskɒnd /
To abscond means to flee or to escape to avoid arrest or legal prosecution.
When criminals know they’re about to get caught,
they sometimes abscond in the middle of the night...
taking the loot with them, of course.
It doesn’t have to be a serious crime, just something you can get in trouble for.
You just... sneak away before someone sees you...
People who haven’t paid their rent sometimes abscond
so the landlord can’t go after them for the rent money they owe.
Dogs are really good at absconding with stolen goods...
They’ll take something they’re not supposed to,
or they steal some food,
and abscond to their favorite hiding place so they can enjoy it without getting caught.
They sneak away, then they look all cute and innocent...
abscond / æbˈskɒnd /
“To abscond” is often used in the sense of leaving surreptitiously
and taking something with you.
Fraudulent investors abscond with their clients’ money.
Robbers abscond with the loot... or whatever it is they managed to steal.
All this is done surreptitiously, of course.
surreptitious / ˌsɜr əpˈtɪʃ əs /
If something is done surreptitiously, it’s done in secret.
Sometimes to catch someone in the act,
you video record them surreptitiously by hiding a camera somewhere.
Cameras can be so small you can hide them anywhere, really...
you can just make them look like an innocent household object.
Human beings are like that... if they know they’re being recorded, they behave well.
So you often need to be surreptitious to catch them in the act.
surreptitious / ˌsɜr əpˈtɪʃ əs /
If you like people watching,
you know what it means to do something surreptitiously.
People get uncomfortable if a stranger is observing or staring at them.
So, on the subway or the bus, or in a crowded place,
you can observe people surreptitiously.
You try to be careful about your surreptitious glances
so they don’t know you’re observing them.
In this situation, I’d say it’s more of a furtive glance.
furtive / ˈfɜr tɪv /
You know, like when people are interested in each other...
(romantically, I mean)
... they don’t just stare at each other.
Intead, they share furtive looks from across the room.
It’s as if they’re stealing a quick look.
Just a furtive glance... [chuckles] pretending to be coy.
furtive / ˈfɜr tɪv /
Now, when people abscond with something, they do it surreptitiously.
Of course!
They don’t want to get caught.
Have you ever been on your smartphone
and noticed someone take a surreptitious look at your screen?
[chuckles] Busted!
When I see someone do that, I find it kinda creepy...
“What are you looking at?”
At least try to be a little surreptitious.
Some professors don’t want you to use your cell phone in class.
Meh... students do it anyhow.
They just learn to do it surreptitiously.
Well, at least they think they’re being surreptitious.
They don’t realize how easy it is to tell what they’re doing
when they keep glancing down... looking at something under their desks.
[chuckles] When you make eye contact with them,
they look like a puppy that absconded with a pair of socks and try to hide it.
[chuckles]
There’s no need to be surreptitious about your support for Snap Language, though.
You can like and share this video, subscribe, and
venmo a coffee.
abscond / æbˈskɒnd / to leave secretly, usually to escape prosecution....
surreptitious / ˌsɜr əpˈtɪʃ əs / done secretly, in a clandestine way...
furtive / ˈfɜr tɪv / done by stealth or secretly...
Thank you!
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