abet

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /əˈbɛt/ UK /əˈbɛt/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like abate /ɛ/ vs /eɪ/

Meanings

1

verb
to encourage or assist someone in a wrongdoing

He was charged with helping to abet the robbery.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to encourage or assist... assist aid encourage incite help support facilitate instigate

Opposites

hinder obstruct impede discourage deter thwart

Word family

Derived forms abetmentabettorabetterabetting

Related forms bait

Simplified etymology

Abet entered English in the Middle English period from Old French abeter, “urge on, deceive, or harass.” The English verb could once mean either inciting wrongdoing or encouraging someone for their benefit, but the unfavorable sense later became dominant. Bait has a related root.

Etymology

From Old French abeter ('to incite, hound on'), from a- (Latin ad-, 'to') + beter ('to bait, harass'), of Germanic origin, akin to Old Norse beita ('to cause to bite').

abeter Old French *baitijaną Proto-Germanic

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# abet

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /əˈbɛt/
**IPA (UK):** /əˈbɛt/

## Meanings
1. to encourage or assist someone in a wrongdoing

## Examples
- He was charged with helping to abet the robbery.

## Synonyms
- assist
- aid
- encourage
- incite
- help
- support
- facilitate
- instigate

## Antonyms
- hinder
- obstruct
- impede
- discourage
- deter
- thwart

## Derived Forms
- abetment
- abettor
- abetter
- abetting

## Related Forms
- bait

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: abeter
- Root: *baitijaną

## Etymology
From Old French abeter ('to incite, hound on'), from a- (Latin ad-, 'to') + beter ('to bait, harass'), of Germanic origin, akin to Old Norse beita ('to cause to bite').

## AI Etymology
Abet is from Old French abeter ('to incite, hound on'), from a- (Latin ad-, 'to') + beter ('to bait, harass'), of Germanic origin, akin to Old Norse beita ('to cause to bite'). In present-day use, it means to encourage or assist someone in a wrongdoing. Derived formations include abetment, abettor, abetter, and abetting. Related vocabulary includes bait.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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