abject

adjective

ab·​ject ˈab-ˌjekt 

1

: sunk to or existing in a low state or condition : very bad or severe

living in abject poverty

to lowest pitch of abject fortune thou art fallen

—John Milton

abject failure

2

a

: cast down in spirit : servile, spiritless

a man made abject by suffering

an abject coward

b

: showing hopelessness or resignation

abject surrender

3

: expressing or offered in a humble and often ingratiating spirit

abject flattery

an abject apology

abjectly

ˈab-ˌjek(t)-lē 

ab-ˈjek(t)-

adverb

abjectness

ˈab-ˌjek(t)-nəs 

ab-ˈjek(t)-

noun

Did you know?

We’re sorry to say you must cast your eyes down to fully understand abject: in Middle English the word described those lowly ones who are rejected and cast out. By the 15th century, it was applied as it still is today to anything that has sunk to, or exists in, a low state or condition; in modern use it often comes before the words poverty, misery, and failure. Applied to words like surrender and apology, it connotes hopelessness and humility. The word’s Latin source is the verb abicere, meaning “to throw away, throw down, overcome, or abandon.” Like reject, its ultimate root is the Latin verb jacere, meaning “to throw.” Subject is also from jacere, and we’ll leave you with that word as a way to change the subject.

Synonyms

• humble
• servile
• meek

Choose the Right Synonym for abject

mean, ignoble, abject, sordid mean being below the normal standards of human decency and dignity.

mean suggests small-mindedness, ill temper, or cupidity.

mean and petty satire

ignoble suggests a loss or lack of some essential high quality of mind or spirit.

an ignoble scramble after material possessions

abject may imply degradation, debasement, or servility.

abject poverty

sordid is stronger than all of these in stressing physical or spiritual degradation and abjectness.

a sordid story of murder and revenge

Examples of abject in a Sentence

… the time would come that no human being should be humiliated or be made abject. —Katherine Anne Porter, The Never-Ending Wrong, 1977

… my critical intelligence sometimes shrivels to an abject nodding of the head. —Lewis H. Lapham, Harper's, May 1971

… nothing seemed to have changed at the Beehive across the years. The same pallid employees were visible in the same abject state of peonage, cringing under the whiplash of overseers. —S. J. Perelman, Baby, It's Cold Inside, 1970

They live in abject misery.

He offered an abject apology.

She thought he was an abject coward.

Recent Examples on the Web

Weapons plays along the same lines in this sub-genre’s sandbox, too, denying easy catharsis after wracking viewers’ nerves with its combination of pitch-black humor, abject grief, and superbly conducted jump scares. —Andy Crump, Time, 9 Aug. 2025

There can be no cure for this abject failure without a full, head-on attack on the medical establishment and a renewal of ethical priorities. —David Marks, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Aug. 2025

Seventy percent of all birds on Earth are our prisoners too, living out their flightless lives in brief, abject misery, thanks to the poultry industry. —Grrlscientist, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025

When he’s arrested and taken away in the back of a Humvee, Hoult doesn’t look at anyone or anything — not in defiance, not even in abject misery. —Matt Zoller Seitz, Vulture, 16 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, "outcast, rejected, lowly," borrowed from Latin abjectus "downcast, humble, sordid," from past participle of abicere "to throw away, throw down, overcome, abandon," from ab- ab- + -icere, reduced form of jacere "to throw" — more at jet entry 3

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

abject

adjective

ab·​ject ˈab-ˌjekt 

: very low in spirit or hope : wretched

abject misery

an abject coward

abjectly

ˈab-ˌjek-(t)lē 

ab-ˈjek-

adverb

abjectness

-ˌjek(t)-nəs 

-ˈjek(t)-

noun