esse, sent-, terest-

1. A situation in which someone, or something, is not available: The teacher noted Sarah's absence from class for the third time this week.
2. The time during which someone is away: Manual has had an excessive number of absences from school this month.
3. That which is lacking or desired: Curtis was accused of having an absence of leadership as well as an absence of initiative.
4. A condition in which someone is inattentive or not paying attention: Catherine and Frances noticed that the periods of absences of their friend's mind seemed to be increasing.
5. Etymology: from Old Frence absence (14th century), from Latin absentia, absentem (nom. absens), present participle of abesse. "to be away from, to be absent"; from ab-, "away" + esse, "to be".

Translation: "The one who is absent will not be an heir."

Sometimes it is also translated as, "Out of sight, out of mind." or "Absence does not make the heart grow fonder."

Karl wrote to his sweetheart that she shouldn't believe the old adage, Absens haeres non erit because I love you even more while you are away from me.

A reference to an unavailability; inaccessible: Mary asked, "James, why were you absent from work yesterday?"

David gave Julia a very absent stare as if he didn't understand what she was saying.

While or when fever is absent.

A medical direction or instruction.

With the defendant absent.

Used in law to refer to the defendant not being present or not available.

1. Someone who is expected to be in a place or at an event, but who doesn't go: Virginia was the only absentee when the roll was called.
2. People who are not attending their employment, school, duty, etc.: The number of absentees at the factory was of concern to the managers.

The student leadership was upset about the number of absentees at the rally the day before.

The habitual failure to appear or to be somewhere, especially for work or some other regular duty: The most common causes of absenteeisms include influenza and occupationally related skin diseases.

The rates of absenteeism in the work force caused the factory to reduce production.

The explanations for a number of absenteeisms varied from headaches to injuries.

Anyone who is not present or who is not in a certain place at a given time; unaccounted for; nonexistent person: Shawn was an absenter who missed more classes than he attended.

As a joke, the student club at the university decided to give an award to the most outstanding absenter, the one who missed most of his or her classes!

At the awards ceremony, there was a tie with two absenters because they were not present for the same number of times.

1. Regarding a person who is preoccupied, forgetful, or careless as a result of some kind of distraction: It took the absent-minded man a long time to find his glasses which were on top of his head.
2. Descriptive of an individual who is lost in thought or shows a preoccupation with something else: The absentminded writer couldn't remember where he put his notes for the new chapter of his book.

Pertaining to how, in a preoccupied manner, the object of focus is diverted by irrelevant thoughts or some environmental events: Today Alice absentmindedly put orange juice into her breakfast coffee.

Jesse, the scientist, appeared to be puttering around in his garden absentmindedly, but he was really distracted because he was thinking about a new scientific formula.

1. A low level of attention or an intense attention to a single object of focus that makes a person unaware of what is going on around him or her: Absentmindedness is clearly a part of everyone's life when something is merely inconvenient, such as missing a familiar turnoff on the highway, or some are very serious as when absentmindedness can cause accidents, injury, or even a loss of life.

Jeff's absentmindedness caused him to be late because he took the wrong public transportation to work.

2. A preoccupation with something that is so great that the ordinary demands of attention on something else are ignored: Cheryl was so lost in her absentmindedness that she was unaware of where she was or what she was supposed to be doing there.

1. Having no concern regarding a result: Since the judge stands to profit from the sale of the company, he can't be considered a disinterested person in this legal dispute.

Despite critical disapproval, disinterested has come to be widely used by many educated writers to mean "uninterested" or "having lost interest".

2. Etymology: from Latin dis-, "not, without" + interested, "it matters"; frominteresse, literally, "to be in the middle", from esse, "to be".