—v.
1 intr. (often foll. by from) get free of the restriction or control of a place, person, etc.
2 intr. (of a gas, liquid, etc.) leak from a container or pipe etc.
3 intr. succeed in avoiding danger, punishment, etc.; get off safely.
4 tr. get completely free of (a person, grasp, etc.).
5 tr. avoid or elude (a commitment, danger, etc.).
6 tr. elude the notice or memory of (nothing escapes you; the name escaped me).
7 tr. (of words etc.) issue unawares from (a person, a person's lips).
—n.
1 the act or an instance of escaping; avoidance of danger, injury, etc.
2 the state of having escaped (was a narrow escape).
3 a means of escaping (often attrib. : escape hatch).
4 a leakage of gas etc.
5 a temporary relief from reality or worry.
6 a garden plant running wild.
Phrases and idioms:
escape clause Law a clause specifying the conditions under which a contracting party is free from an obligation. escape road a road for a vehicle to turn into if unable to negotiate a bend, descent, etc., safely (esp. on a racetrack). escape velocity the minimum velocity needed to escape from the gravitational field of a body. escape wheel a toothed wheel in the escapement of a watch or clock.
Derivatives:
escapable adj. escaper n.
Etymology: ME f. AF, ONF escaper ult. f. med.L (as EX-(1), cappa cloak)
Useful english dictionary. 2012.