conspicuous by one's absence

adjective

Drawing attention by the fact of not being present at an expected place.

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Meanings

adjective
  1. Drawing attention by the fact of not being present at an expected place.
    1 more example

    Occasionally at a bush dance, when the elderly folk were conspicuous by their absence, the M.C. would throw a jazz-garter on the floor, point at some lucky fellow, and shout, 'You have ten seconds to find its mate. A packet of cigarettes if you do'. The girls would squeal and giggle and start running; […]

    1965, R. H. Conquest, Horses in the Kitchen: True Tales of Outback Australia, page 37

Translations

Dutch schitteren door afwezigheid
  • schitteren door afwezigheidTranslations
Finnish loistaa poissaolollaan
  • loistaa poissaolollaanTranslations
French briller par son absence
  • briller par son absenceTranslations
German durch Abwesenheit glänzen
  • durch Abwesenheit glänzenTranslations
Italian brillare per la propria assenza
  • brillare per la propria assenzaTranslations
Norwegian Bokmål glimre ved sitt fravær
  • glimre ved sitt fraværTranslations
Polish podejrzanie nieobecny
  • podejrzanie nieobecnyTranslations
Spanish brillar por su ausencia
  • brillar por su ausenciaTranslations
Swedish lysa med sin frånvaro
  • lysa med sin frånvaroTranslations
Cite this entry
APA

conspicuous by one's absence. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/conspicuous%20by%20one's%20absence

MLA

“conspicuous by one's absence.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/conspicuous%20by%20one's%20absence. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “conspicuous by one's absence,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/conspicuous%20by%20one's%20absence.

Source: conspicuous by one's absence on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.