fled
ˈfled 
; fleeing
; fleeing
1
a
: to run away often from danger or evil : fly
The family fled from the war-torn zone.
b
: to hurry toward a place of security
Refugees fled to a neighboring country.
c
law
: to evade arrest, detention, or prosecution
2
: to pass away swiftly : vanish
mists fleeing before the rising sun
: to run away from
fled the scene of the accident
Many people fled the city to escape the fighting.
Examples of flee in a Sentence
The family fled from Nazi Germany to Britain in 1936.
He was accused of trying to flee the scene of the accident.
Many people fled the city to escape the fighting.
He was forced to flee the country.
Recent Examples on the Web
The suspect fled from the hospital after the shooting and was later taken into custody, where a weapon was recovered, the Police Department said.
—
Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2026
In May 2020, sheriff’s deputy Aaron Russell, who was assigned to the Central Jail, shot and killed 36-year-old Nicholas Bils as Bils fled, unarmed, after slipping out of handcuffs just outside the facility.
—Kelly Davis, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026
Police in Virginia used a technique called geofencing to tap into Google's databases to find out who was near the scene of a bank robbery in the town of Midlothian, where a robber pulled out a gun and subsequently fled with $195,000.
—Bronson Arcuri, NPR, 26 Apr. 2026
In 2019, Nadiia Mudryk-Mochalova fled to Chornobyl, as the Ukrainians spell it, for work — after moving to Kyiv with her daughters to escape the armed men who occupied their town in the eastern Luhansk region near the Russian border.
—Serhiy Morgunov, Washington Post, 26 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for flee
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Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2026
In May 2020, sheriff’s deputy Aaron Russell, who was assigned to the Central Jail, shot and killed 36-year-old Nicholas Bils as Bils fled, unarmed, after slipping out of handcuffs just outside the facility.
—Kelly Davis, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026
Police in Virginia used a technique called geofencing to tap into Google's databases to find out who was near the scene of a bank robbery in the town of Midlothian, where a robber pulled out a gun and subsequently fled with $195,000.
—Bronson Arcuri, NPR, 26 Apr. 2026
In 2019, Nadiia Mudryk-Mochalova fled to Chornobyl, as the Ukrainians spell it, for work — after moving to Kyiv with her daughters to escape the armed men who occupied their town in the eastern Luhansk region near the Russian border.
—Serhiy Morgunov, Washington Post, 26 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for flee
Cite this Entry
“Flee.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flee. Accessed 27 Apr. 2026.
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