at large
66
6.2
- idiom
- /æt lɑrdʒ/
:
en libertad
- The person responsible for the Crystal Lake horror remains at large.
- remain at large
So he was left at large but still engaged with probation.
- So he was left at large but still engaged with probation.
- The LAPD now reports that after unsuccessfully searching for the suspect underneath that guy lying on the ground, he is still at large.
Examples
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Police say the incident was a random killing, and the suspect is still at large.
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Three suspects remain at large after a security guard was shot and killed during a robbery at the Bank of Michigan.
-
The actual killer is still at large.
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The battle left eight men dead and a dangerous suspect at large.
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The killer is still at large.
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We have a violent criminal at large, armed and dangerous.
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The criminal who kidnapped my dog is still at large.
-
Today, Ntaganda is still at large and is one of the M23 movement's top leaders.
Blog text (8) -
To this day, the killer and the mastermind of Politkovskaya's assassination remain undisclosed and at large.
Academic text (2010) -
The police are concerned because a dangerous criminal is still at large in the city.
Synonyms
129
1.9
Free and not controlled by anyone
63
4.5
Free after escaping confinement and possibly dangerous, hard to find
38
3.1
Without a home, often used for animals like cats or dogs
Free after getting out of a place where you were kept, for example a prison
A person who police have not caught after a crime
Antonyms
How Free
Surface Forms
Morphology
at + large
The sense 'not yet captured; free' cannot be derived from combining 'at' (prepositional marker) with the literal meaning of 'large' (big). This is an idiomatic/historical extension of 'large' (as 'at liberty') that is not predictable from the constituent meanings, so a B1 learner who knows the words would likely not infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
At large uses the old sense of large meaning 'free' or 'wide open'. Picture a person walking in a wide field instead of a locked cell — they are at large, which is why the phrase means 'not captured'.