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disappear

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do a disappearing act

To vanish from sight or flee suddenly from a place. My kids always do a disappearing act when I tell them it's time for their chores. The three of us did a disappearing act, heading for the Mexican border so we could leave this all behind us.

See also: act, disappear

pull a disappearing act

To depart or go away very suddenly or without warning, especially so as to avoid doing something. My roommate loves to throw parties here, but she always pulls a disappearing act the next day when everything needs to be cleaned up! Brian is nearly two weeks late finishing his sales report—that's why he's been pulling a disappearing act whenever the boss is around.

See also: act, disappear, pull

disappear from something

to vanish from something or some place, especially from sight, view, or the face of the earth; to have been taken away from something. Jack disappeared all of a sudden last week, as if from the face of the earth. The car pulled away and disappeared from sight down the road.

See also: disappear

disappear into thin air

also vanish into thin air

to suddenly become impossible to see or find Police say the suspect seems to have disappeared into thin air. When Jim opened his eyes, the bear had vanished into thin air.

See also: air, disappear, thin

disappear/vanish off the face of the earth

  (British, American & Australian) also fall off the face of the earth (American)

to disappear completely We lost contact with Ed after he left college - he just disappeared off the face of the earth.

See also: disappear, earth, face, of, off

do a disappearing act

Vanish, as in As soon as the teacher came outside, Mary did a disappearing act. This expression describes a sudden disappearance as if by magic and presumably alludes to a magician's performance. [Colloquial; early 1900s]

See also: act, disappear

do a disappearing act

Informal

To vanish.

See also: act, disappear