disappear

disappear — 動詞

1. to move out of sight, or to reach a place where nobody can see or find you

1.動詞不及物A2
釋義

消失

從視線中消失，無法被看見或找到

to move out of sight, or to reach a place where nobody can see or find you

例句

Yuki looked up and saw the cat disappear behind the garden wall.

Yuki 抬起頭，看見那隻貓消失在花園牆後面。

disappear + behind [physical object]

The sun disappeared below the horizon just before seven.

太陽在快七點時消失在地平線下方。

同義詞
  • vanish

    more sudden or dramatic; suggests a complete and often mysterious disappearance

  • fade (away)

    implies a gradual rather than sudden disappearance

  • evaporate

    more informal; often used for people leaving quickly or items going missing suddenly

反義詞
  • appear

    the direct opposite — to come into sight

  • reappear

    to come back into sight after disappearing

文法句型

disappear + from/into/behind/under [place]

disappear + adverb (suddenly/slowly/completely)

用法筆記

Frequently followed by a phrase showing direction or location, such as 'behind', 'into', 'from', or 'under'.

常見錯誤

❌She disappeared the room.
✅She disappeared from the room.
💡'disappear' is intransitive in this sense; you cannot directly 'disappear' a person or thing.

2. to stop existing forever, so that something or someone is no longer present or a

2.動詞不及物B1
釋義

消亡；絕跡

不再存在，永久消失

to stop existing forever, so that something or someone is no longer present or available anywhere

例句

Many old traditions have disappeared as the city has grown bigger.

隨著城市不斷擴張，許多老傳統已經消失了。

disappear as [something happens] — cause-effect pattern

The pain in Indra's shoulder disappeared after two days of rest.

Indra 肩膀的疼痛在休息兩天後就消失了。

同義詞
  • vanish

    more sudden; used especially when something stops existing abruptly

  • die out

    phrasal verb; used mainly for species, traditions, or customs that gradually cease to exist

  • fade away

    suggests a slow, gradual ending rather than a sudden one

反義詞
  • appear

    to come into existence

  • emerge

    to come out and become known or existent after a period

文法句型

disappear + adverb (gradually/overnight/completely)

disappear over time

3. to take someone away and secretly imprison or kill them, often because of their

3.動詞及物C1
釋義

強制失蹤

因政治原因被綁架、秘密囚禁或殺害

to take someone away and secretly imprison or kill them, often because of their political views, without telling anyone their location or fate

例句

During the dictatorship, hundreds of students were disappeared by the security forces.

獨裁時期，數百名學生被安全部隊秘密帶走後下落不明。

passive: [person] was disappeared by [institution]

The regime was accused of disappearing journalists who wrote about government corruption.

該政權被指控綁架了報導政府腐敗的記者。

active transitive: [government] disappeared [person]

同義詞
  • abduct

    general term for taking someone by force, not limited to political contexts

  • forcibly disappear

    the full legal/human-rights term; more precise and formal

  • spirit away

    more literary; implies secret removal without legal process

文法句型

[person] was disappeared by [institution]

[government] disappeared [someone]

用法筆記

Almost exclusively used in political contexts involving state or military actors. The passive form ('was disappeared') is especially common. Distinguish from sense 1: in this sense, someone else causes the disappearance, rather than the person going somewhere voluntarily.

常見錯誤

❌The thief disappeared the painting from the museum.
✅The thief stole the painting from the museum.
💡'disappear' in this political sense is not used for ordinary theft; use 'steal' or 'take' instead.
❌She disappeared her phone.
✅She lost her phone.
💡the transitive political sense of 'disappear' does not apply to objects you have misplaced.

4. to make something vanish by taking it away in a secret or dishonest way, so that

4.動詞及物B2
釋義

銷毀；藏匿

秘密或非法移除使人無法找到

to make something vanish by taking it away in a secret or dishonest way, so that nobody can find it

例句

The accountant disappeared all the financial records just before the tax inspection.

那位會計在稅務稽查前夕把所有財務記錄都偷偷銷毀了。

disappear + [incriminating documents]

Caleb was caught on video trying to disappear the evidence from his locker.

Caleb 試圖從置物櫃裡銷毀證據，全被監視器拍了下來。

同義詞
  • get rid of

    phrasal verb; more neutral and can be used for any kind of removal

  • make disappear

    a more explicit and slightly more formal alternative

  • spirit away

    implies moving something secretly; slightly literary

文法句型

disappear + [object] (documents/evidence/files)

be disappeared (passive) — of objects

用法筆記

This is an informal transitive use of 'disappear' common in crime, thriller, and office contexts. Unlike sense 3, it applies to objects, not people, and does not carry political overtones. Often used when someone destroys or hides evidence or records.

常見錯誤

❌I disappeared the trash.
✅I took out the trash.
💡Do not use this sense for routine removal; it implies secrecy or dishonesty.