What does "abstract" mean?
An abridgement or summary of a longer publication.
Abstract
/ˈæbˌstɹækt/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Top 500 ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An abridgement or summary of a longer publication.
- Grammar: abstract is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: outline, precis, synopsis, abate.
- Useful contrasts: academic worldliness, action-driven, actionable.
- Usage evidence: To him, hunger was an abstract concept; he always had enough to eat.
How to use "abstract"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "abstract" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "abstract" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "abstract" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "abstract" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "abstract" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "outline" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "abstract", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An abridgement or summary of a longer publication.
"An analysis and abstract of every treatise he had read."
- 2 a concept or idea not associated with any specific instance wordnet
- 3 Something that concentrates in itself the qualities of a larger item, or multiple items.
"Man, the abstract Of all perfection, which the workmanship Of Heaven hath modeled."
- 4 a sketchy summary of the main points of an argument or theory wordnet
- 5 Something that concentrates in itself the qualities of a larger item, or multiple items.; Concentrated essence of a product.
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- 6 Something that concentrates in itself the qualities of a larger item, or multiple items.; A powdered solid extract of a medicinal substance mixed with lactose.
- 7 An abstraction; an abstract term; that which is abstract.
"Thus the concrete like has its abstract likeness; the concretes, father and son, have the abstracts, paternity and filiation."
- 8 The theoretical way of looking at things; something that exists only in idealized form.
- 9 An abstract work of art.
- 10 A summary title of the key points detailing a tract of land, for ownership; abstract of title.
Verb
- 1 To separate; to disengage. transitive
"He was incapable of forming any opinion or resolution abstracted from his own prejudices."
- 2 consider a concept without thinking of a specific example; consider abstractly or theoretically wordnet
- 3 To separate; to disengage.; To remove; to take away; withdraw. transitive
"The lightning of the public burdens, which at present abstract a large proportion of profits and wages."
- 4 consider apart from a particular case or instance wordnet
- 5 To separate; to disengage.; To steal; to take away; to remove without permission. euphemistic, transitive
"Von Rosen had quietly abstracted the bearing-reins from the harness."
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- 6 give an abstract (of) wordnet
- 7 To separate; to disengage.; To extract by means of distillation. obsolete, transitive
"Poison from roses who could e'er abstract?"
- 8 make off with belongings of others wordnet
- 9 To separate; to disengage.; To draw off (interest or attention). transitive
"The young stranger had been abstracted and silent."
- 10 To separate; to disengage.; To withdraw oneself; to retire. figuratively, intransitive, literally, reflexive, transitive
- 11 To separate; to disengage.; To consider abstractly; to contemplate separately or by itself; to consider theoretically; to look at as a general quality. transitive
"To abstract the notions of time, of space, and of matter."
- 12 To separate; to disengage.; To consider abstractly; to contemplate separately or by itself; to consider theoretically; to look at as a general quality.; To conceptualize an ideal subgroup by means of the generalization of an attribute, as follows: by apprehending an attribute inherent to one individual, then separating that attribute and contemplating it by itself, then conceiving of that attribute as a general quality, then despecifying that conceived quality with respect to several or many individuals, and by then ideating a group composed of those individuals perceived to possess said quality. transitive
- 13 To separate; to disengage.; To consider abstractly; to contemplate separately or by itself; to consider theoretically; to look at as a general quality.; To perform the process of abstraction. intransitive, rare, transitive
"I own myself able to abstract in one sense."
- 14 To separate; to disengage.; To consider abstractly; to contemplate separately or by itself; to consider theoretically; to look at as a general quality.; To create abstractions. intransitive, transitive
- 15 To separate; to disengage.; To consider abstractly; to contemplate separately or by itself; to consider theoretically; to look at as a general quality.; To produce an abstraction, usually by refactoring existing code. Generally used with "out". intransitive, transitive
"He abstracted out the square root function."
- 16 To summarize; to abridge; to epitomize. transitive
Adjective
- 1 Derived; extracted. obsolete
- 2 Drawn away; removed from; apart from; separate. archaic
"The more abstract we are from the body ... the more fit we shall be to behold divine light."
- 3 Not concrete: conceptual, ideal.
"Her new film is an abstract piece, combining elements of magic realism, flashbacks, and animation but with very little in terms of plot construction."
- 4 Not concrete: conceptual, ideal.; Insufficiently factual.
- 5 Not concrete: conceptual, ideal.; Apart from practice or reality; vague; theoretical; impersonal; not applied.
"During the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s, this commitment brought him into frequent critical confrontation with entrenched forms of conservative thinking (in academic areas from history and social science to the more abstract domains of ethical and political philosophy),[…]"
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- 6 Not concrete: conceptual, ideal.; As a noun, denoting a concept or intangible as opposed to an object, place, or person.
- 7 Difficult to understand; abstruse; hard to conceptualize.
"The politician gave a somewhat abstract answer when asked about their plans to cut spending."
- 8 Separately expressing a property or attribute of an object that is considered to be inherent to that object: attributive, ascriptive.
"A concrete name is a name which stands for a thing; an abstract name which stands for an attribute of a thing..."
- 9 Pertaining comprehensively to, or representing, a class or group of objects, as opposed to any specific object; considered apart from any application to a particular object: general, generic, nonspecific; representational.
"A concrete name is a name which stands for a thing; an abstract name which stands for an attribute of a thing.[…]A practice, however, has grown up in more modern times, which, if not introduced by Locke, has gained currency from his example, of applying the expression "abstract name" to all names which are the result of abstraction and generalization, and consequently to all general names, instead of confining it to the names of attributes."
- 10 Absent-minded. archaic
"Abſtract as in a tranſe methought I ſaw, abstract, as in a trance"
- 11 Pertaining to the formal aspect of art, such as the lines, colors, shapes, and the relationships among them.; Free from representational qualities, in particular the non-representational styles of the 20ᵗʰ century. capitalized, often
"But his design is wonderful. He’s getting more and more abstract every day. He’d given up the third dimension when I was there and was just thinking of giving up the second. Soon, he says, there’ll be just the blank canvas. That’s the logical conclusion. Complete abstraction."
- 12 Pertaining to the formal aspect of art, such as the lines, colors, shapes, and the relationships among them.; Absolute.
- 13 Pertaining to the formal aspect of art, such as the lines, colors, shapes, and the relationships among them.; Lacking a story.
- 14 Being a partial basis for subclasses rather than a complete template for objects.
Adjective
- 1 existing only in the mind; separated from embodiment wordnet
- 2 dealing with a subject in the abstract without practical purpose or intention wordnet
- 3 not representing or imitating external reality or the objects of nature wordnet
Antonyms
Example
"To him, hunger was an abstract concept; he always had enough to eat."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "abstract"?
Common synonyms include: outline, precis, synopsis, abate, abbreviate, abbreviation.
How do you use "abstract" in a sentence?
To him, hunger was an abstract concept; he always had enough to eat.
How do you pronounce "abstract"?
Pronounced /ˈæbˌstɹækt/.
Etymology
From Middle English abstract, borrowed from Latin abstractus, perfect passive participle of abstrahō (“draw away”), formed from abs- (“away”) + trahō (“to pull, draw”). The verbal sense is first attested in 1542.