/ adjective æbˈstrækt, ˈæb strækt; noun ˈæb strækt; verb æbˈstrækt for 11-14, ˈæb strækt for 10 /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR abstract ON THESAURUS.COM
adjective
thought of apart from concrete realities, specific objects, or actual instances: an abstract idea.
expressing a quality or characteristic apart from any specific object or instance, as justice, poverty, and speed.
not applied or practical; theoretical: abstract science.
difficult to understand; abstruse: abstract speculations.
Fine Arts.
of or relating to the formal aspect of art, emphasizing lines, colors, generalized or geometrical forms, etc., especially with reference to their relationship to one another.
Often Abstract .pertaining to the nonrepresentational art styles of the 20th century.
noun
a summary of a text, scientific article, document, speech, etc.; epitome.
something that concentrates in itself the essential qualities of anything more extensive or more general, or of several things; essence.
an idea or term considered apart from some material basis or object.
an abstract work of art.
verb (used with object)
to make an abstract of; summarize.
to draw or take away; remove.
to divert or draw away the attention of.
to steal.
to consider as a general quality or characteristic apart from specific objects or instances: to abstract the notions of time, space, and matter.
Idioms for abstract
abstract away from, to omit from consideration.
in the abstract, without reference to a specific object or instance; in theory: beauty in the abstract.
Origin of abstract
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English: “withdrawn from worldly interests,” from Latin abstractus “drawn off” (past participle of abstrahere ). See abs-, tract1
non·ab·stract·ly,adverbnon·ab·stract·ness,nouno·ver·ab·stract,verb (used with object),adjectivepre·ab·stract,adjectivesu·per·ab·stract,adjectivesu·per·ab·stract·ly,adverbsu·per·ab·stract·ness,noun
In a pursuit whose meaning and purpose is abstract at the best of times, that’s not nothing.
Stop Counting Your Running Mileage|Alex Hutchinson|August 28, 2020|Outside Online
“Our models can validate thousands of unseen candidates in seconds,” the study’s authors wrote in the abstract to their paper, which appears in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
50 new planets, including one as big as Neptune, are identified using A.I.|rhhackettfortune|August 26, 2020|Fortune
It also makes it more real and concrete, rather than abstract.
Hurricanes have names. Some climate experts say heat waves should, too|Jack J. Lee|August 14, 2020|Science News
The same applies in fields of biology dealing with more abstract concepts of the individual — entities that emerge as distinct patterns within larger schemes of behavior or activity.
What Is an Individual? Biology Seeks Clues in Information Theory.|Jordana Cepelewicz|July 16, 2020|Quanta Magazine
The Ising model represents one of the simplest places in this abstract “theory space,” and so serves as a proving ground for developing novel tools for exploring uncharted territory.
The Cartoon Picture of Magnets That Has Transformed Science|Charlie Wood|June 24, 2020|Quanta Magazine
These matters are not mere threats to abstract constitutional principles.
Politicians Only Love Journalists When They're Dead|Luke O’Neil|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
To listeners, Adnan is a real human while Jay remains an abstract figure.
The Deal With Serial’s Jay? He’s Pissed Off, Mucks Up Our Timeline|Emily Shire|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Aelita Andre has just wrapped up another major show of her abstract paintings and given interviews on her latest inspirations.
The Tiniest Jackson Pollock|Justin Jones|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She became an international sensation at the tender age of two—before she even started pre-school—for her abstract works of art.
The Tiniest Jackson Pollock|Justin Jones|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Di Bello described the color-splashed works as “abstract expressionism” with “surrealist” methods.
The Tiniest Jackson Pollock|Justin Jones|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The first abstract of votes polled in St. Croix county was for delegate to Congress and for county officers.
Fifty Years In The Northwest|William Henry Carman Folsom
I have no desire for these boarding schools in the abstract.
The Boy's Voice|J. Spencer Curwen
Unhappily, the Assembly is not providing a Constitution for contemporary Frenchmen, but for abstract beings.
The Origins of Contemporary France, Volume 2 (of 6)|Hippolyte A. Taine
The above is only an abstract of this letter, and some of the quotations are abridged.
The Oxford Reformers|Frederic Seebohm
These cap-touches are worth in the abstract about one real—five cents.
Spanish Vistas|George Parsons Lathrop
British Dictionary definitions for abstract
abstract
adjective (ˈæbstrækt)
having no reference to material objects or specific examples; not concrete
not applied or practical; theoretical
hard to understand; recondite; abstruse
denoting art characterized by geometric, formalized, or otherwise nonrepresentational qualities
defined in terms of its formal propertiesan abstract machine
philosophy(of an idea) functioning for some empiricists as the meaning of a general termthe word ``man'' does not name all men but the abstract idea of manhood
noun (ˈæbstrækt)
a condensed version of a piece of writing, speech, etc; summary
an abstract term or idea
an abstract painting, sculpture, etc
in the abstractwithout reference to specific circumstances or practical experience
verb (æbˈstrækt) (tr)
to think of (a quality or concept) generally without reference to a specific example; regard theoretically
to form (a general idea) by abstraction
(ˈæbstrækt) (also intr)to summarize or epitomize
to remove or extract
euphemisticto steal
Word Origin for abstract
C14: (in the sense: extracted): from Latin abstractus drawn off, removed from (something specific), from abs-ab-1 + trahere to draw