levant
verb
le·vant lə-ˈvant 
levanted; levanting; levants
intransitive verb
chiefly British
: to run away from a debt
Word History
Etymology
perhaps from Spanish levantar to break camp, ultimately from Latin levare
First Known Use
1797, in the meaning defined above
Geographical Definition
Levant
geographical name
Le·vant lə-ˈvant
the countries bordering on the eastern Mediterranean Sea —often thought of as extending from Greece to Egypt
Levantine
ˈle-vən-ˌtīn
adjective or noun -ˌtēn
lə-ˈvan-