Definition of "evacuate" []

• To empty or remove the contents of. (verb-transitive)
• To create a vacuum in. (verb-transitive)
• To excrete or discharge waste matter from (the bowel, for example). (verb-transitive)
• To relinquish military possession or occupation of (a town, for example). (verb-transitive)
• To withdraw or send away (troops or inhabitants) from a threatened area. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "With them were four family members of those who died in the terrorist attacks, including Maggie Lemagne, whose brother David was a police officer killed while helping people evacuate from the burning towers."
• "Have you been wondering why so many people refuse to evacuate from the coast when a hurricane such as Rita or Katrina is approaching?"
• "The excuse that the 200,000 people were too poor to evacuate is nonsense too."