Main Entry: ¹ab·stract

Pronunciation: \ab-ˈstrakt, ˈab-ˌ\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Medieval Latin abstractus, from Latin, past participle of abstrahere to drag away, from abs-, ab- + trahere to pull, draw

Date: 14th century

1 a : disassociated from any specific instance <an abstract entity> b : difficult to understand : abstruse <abstract problems> c : insufficiently factual : formal <possessed only an abstract right>
2 : expressing a quality apart from an object <the word poem is concrete, poetry is abstract>
3 a : dealing with a subject in its abstract aspects : theoretical <abstract science> b : impersonal, detached <the abstract compassion of a surgeon — Time>
4 : having only intrinsic form with little or no attempt at pictorial representation or narrative content <abstract painting>

— ab·stract·ly \ab-ˈstrak(t)-lē, ˈab-ˌ\ adverb

— ab·stract·ness \ab-ˈstrak(t)-nəs, ˈab-ˌ\ noun