abet

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /əˈbɛt/ UK /əˈbɛt/ See IPA manual

Minimal pairs

Sounds like abate /ɛ/ vs /eɪ/

verb

Meanings

1

verb
to encourage or assist someone in a wrongdoing

He was charged with helping to abet the robbery.

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

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

# 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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abet

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