distracted

Compared meaning: not paying attention, with the mind elsewhere (adjective).

比较义项：心不在焉、无法专心（形容词）。

• absent

  Describes someone's mind, look or expression as vacant or far away, without stating a specific cause; suggests daydreaming or preoccupation rather than being disturbed by something; slightly more literary.

  形容一个人的神情或思绪显得空茫、心不在焉，并不说明具体原因，暗示走神或陷入沉思，而非被某事干扰；语气略偏书面。

  He gave an absent smile, clearly thinking about something else entirely.

  他心不在焉地笑了笑，显然在想别的事情。

• distracted 本词

  Implies attention is pulled away by a specific external cause (worry, noise, a phone) preventing concentration; often used for momentary lapses with real consequences, e.g., 'distracted driving'; more common in everyday and safety contexts.

  强调注意力被某个具体的外部原因（如忧虑、噪音、手机）干扰而无法集中，常用于描述可能带来后果的一时疏忽，例如“分心驾驶”；在日常和安全语境中更常用。

  Texting behind the wheel, she was too distracted to notice the red light.

  她开车时一边发短信，心烦意乱，没有注意到红灯。

Absent and distracted both mean unable to concentrate. Absent means the mind seems far away, for no stated reason, and sounds literary. Distracted means a specific cause, like worry or noise, pulls attention away, often with consequences. Absent can mean 'not present'; not compared here.

这两个词在“心不在焉、无法专心”这个意义上很接近，但 absent 只描述心思飘忽、神情茫然，不涉及具体原因，语气较中性、偏书面；distracted 则强调注意力被某个具体因素（如忧虑、手机、噪音）打断而无法专心，语气更口语化，也常带来后果。这里不比较 absent 的“缺席的、不在场的”这一义项。