Verdwijn

Verdwijn is a Dutch verb meaning to disappear or cease to be visible, present, or detectable. The standard infinitive is verdwijnen. In the present tense, the forms are ik verdwijn, jij verdwijnt, hij verdwijnt. The past tense is verdween and the past participle is verdwenen. The verb is intransitive and generally used with particles or prepositional phrases, such as uit het zicht, uit iemands leven, of in figuurlijke betekenissen zoals uit het geheugen verdwijnen.

Etymology and related forms

Verdwijnen derives from a prefix ver- combined with an older root related to fading or shrinking. The sense of moving from presence to absence is central to its development in Dutch, with attestations dating from Middle Dutch and continuing in Early Modern Dutch to today. The root concept aligns with other Germanic terms describing fading or vanishing.

Usage and nuances

Verdwijn describes a transition from being present to not present, whether referring to people, objects, phenomena, or abstract things like attention or memory. It can be literal, as in a person stepping into mist or a train vanishing from sight, or figurative, as in a public figure disappearing from the news or a memory fading over time. The phrase uit het zicht verdwijnt or verdwijnt uit iemands leven are common collocations. The term often implies a noticeable or complete end of presence rather than a temporary absence.

See also

Verdwijnen (related entry), verdwijnen, uit het oog verdwijnen.