Evacuate
/ɪˈvæk.ju.eɪt/noun
To remove people or things from a place, especially for safety.
Did you know?Evacuate comes from Latin vacuus, meaning “empty” or “vacant,” the same ancient root behind words like vacuum and vacant.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
evacuare
“to empty out, make void”
Late Latin
Latin
evacuatus
“emptied, made void”
Old French
Old French
evacuer
“to empty out, remove”
14th Century
English
evacuaten
“to empty; later, to clear people from a place”
Modern English
English
evacuate
“to remove people or contents from a place, especially for safety”