Georgian · word · verb
Absquatulate
ab-SKWOCH-uh-layt /æbˈskwɒtʃ əˌleɪt/pronunciation given by a dictionary
First recordedby 1830
To leave in a hurry; to make off or abscond. A jokey mock-Latin American coinage of the 1830s, as if from ab- 'away' + squat + -ulate.
Where it was first recorded
Georgia Messenger, 15 May 1830 ('Cracker Dictionary', as 'obsquatulate'), per Green's Dictionary of Slang.
Also spelled: obsquatulate, absquotilate, absquotulate
In its own time
Even within the past year, several Land Officers and keepers of public monies--the Collector of New Orleans and Plattsburg--the Post Masters of Mobile and Worcester have made serious and prominent additions to the long catalogue of absquatulating defaulters.
Today
Modern exampleThe moment the bill arrived, my cousin absquatulated to the bathroom.
Fine to use, always jokingly, for slipping away or running off.
Questions
What does absquatulate mean?
To leave in a hurry; to make off or abscond. A jokey mock-Latin American coinage of the 1830s, as if from ab- 'away' + squat + -ulate.
When was absquatulate first used?
It is first recorded by 1830 — Georgia Messenger, 15 May 1830 ('Cracker Dictionary', as 'obsquatulate'), per Green's Dictionary of Slang.
Can you still use absquatulate today?
Fine to use, always jokingly, for slipping away or running off.
Sources
- absquatulate, v. — Green's Dictionary of Slang
- absquatulate (v.) — Online Etymology Dictionary
- absquatulate — Merriam-Webster
- absquatulate — Wiktionary
- absquatulate — Dictionary.com (Random House / Collins)
Checked 2026-09-30 · verdict: attested — found in the dictionaries and texts listed above