absence : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: absence	by the DICT Development Group
2 results for absence
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
absence n the state of being absent; "he was surprised by the absence of any explanation" Antonym(s): presence failure to be present Antonym(s): presence the time interval during which something or somebody is away; "he visited during my absence" the occurrence of an abrupt, transient loss or impairment of consciousness (which is not subsequently remembered), sometimes with light twitching, fluttering eyelids, etc.; common in petit mal epilepsy Synonym(s): absence, absence seizure
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 A state of being absent or withdrawn from a place or from companionship; -- opposed to {presence}.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. [bd]In the absence of conventional law.[b8] --Kent. 3. Inattention to things present; abstraction (of mind); as, absence of mind. [bd]Reflecting on the little absences and distractions of mankind.[b8] --Addison. To conquer that abstraction which is called absence. --Landor.