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Added 9 October 2026

derelict

/ˈdɛr.ə.lɪkt/ adjective

In Latin: derelictus, relictus Wiktionary

adjective Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about derelict at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Given up by the guardian or owner; abandoned, forsaken.
There was a derelict ship on the island.
Of a ship: abandoned at sea; of a spacecraft: abandoned in outer space.
There was a derelict ship on the island.
Of property: in a poor state due to abandonment or neglect; dilapidated, neglected.

noun

Property abandoned by its former guardian or owner; an item of such property. Property abandoned at sea with no hope of recovery and no expectation of being returned to its owner; an item of such property, especially a ship.
Property abandoned at sea with no hope of recovery and no expectation of being returned to its owner; an item of such property, especially a ship.
An abandoned or forsaken person; an outcast, a waif.

verb

To abandon or forsake (someone or something).
To neglect a duty.

Origin

The adjective and verb are a learned borrowing from Latin dērelictus (“(completely) abandoned, deserted, forsaken; discarded”), the perfect passive participle of dērelinquō (“to abandon, desert, forsake; to discard”), from dē- (prefix meaning ‘away from; completely, thoroughly’) + relinquō (“to abandon, desert, forsake, leave (behind); to depart (from); to give up, relinquish”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ- (“to leave”). Doublet of relict, relic, and relinquish. The noun is derived from the adjective.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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