French word

décamper

Pronunciation

IPA/dekɑ̃pe/

Meaning

  • verbleave

Example

Ils décampent quand la police arrive.

They leave when the police arrive.

Illustration for décamper (leave)

More examples

Après la dispute, il décampe sans prévenir.

After the argument, he leaves without warning.

Core concept

A campsite is suddenly packed up and abandoned when trouble appears.

Common phrases

  • décamper discrètement

    slip away quietly

  • décamper sans prévenir

    leave without warning

Similar words

partir: To go from one place to another.
s'en aller: To go away from one's current location, in casual speech.
filer: To slip away quickly from a place.
s'enfuir: To flee quickly from danger or a pursuer.

Definition in French

Quitter rapidement un endroit, en particulier de façon imprévue ou pour fuir une situation embarrassante.

Word origin

Décamper combines dé- with camper and originally evokes the act of breaking camp; camper ultimately relates to Latin campus, meaning open field.

Usage tips

  • Décamper is intransitive, and a place can be introduced with de, as in décamper de cet endroit.

Other meanings

  • fleeverb

Opposites

  • resterstayverb
  • s'attarderlingerverb

Word lists with this word