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abet

Syllabification: (a·bet)
Pronunciation: /əˈbet/

Translate abet | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of abet

verb (abets, abetting, abetted)

[with object]
  • encourage or assist (someone) to do something wrong, in particular, to commit a crime or other offense:he was not guilty of murder but was guilty of aiding and abetting others
  • encourage or assist someone to commit (a crime):we are aiding and abetting this illegal traffic

Derivatives

abetment

noun

abettor

(also abetter) noun

Origin:

late Middle English (in the sense 'urge to do something good or bad'): from Old French abeter, from a- (from Latin ad 'to, at') + beter 'hound, urge on'

Spelling rule

If a verb ends with a single vowel plus a consonant, and the stress is at the end of the word (as in refer), double the last letter when adding -ing or -ed: (abets, abetting, abetted).

abet in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of abet in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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