as in unsuccessful
producing no results
an abortive attempt to recover the sunken pirate ship
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Recent Examples of abortive
The Chinese duo’s voices pirouette around a pulse that sounds like a car door chime as abortive crashes puncture the otherwise placid, kickless ambience.
—
James Gui, Pitchfork, 17 Apr. 2026
The social media profiles of some Moran personnel also show they were linked to Wagner, which was effectively liquidated after its then boss Yevgeny Prigozhin launched an abortive revolt in Russia in 2023.
—Saskya Vandoorne, CNN Money, 18 Dec. 2025
Even as Nintendo has endlessly mined its classic consoles for nostalgic re-releases in recent decades, the company has seemed to completely ignore the existence of the Virtual Boy—its abortive 1990s dip into the world of early virtual reality.
—ArsTechnica, 12 Sep. 2025
Garbowit recalls that there were only around sixteen members of Congress lined up behind Thanedor’s abortive resolution—so the fact that Green’s follow-up motion garnered seventy-nine supporters in the caucus is a sign of progress.
—Chris Lehmann, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abortive
James Gui, Pitchfork, 17 Apr. 2026
The social media profiles of some Moran personnel also show they were linked to Wagner, which was effectively liquidated after its then boss Yevgeny Prigozhin launched an abortive revolt in Russia in 2023.
—Saskya Vandoorne, CNN Money, 18 Dec. 2025
Even as Nintendo has endlessly mined its classic consoles for nostalgic re-releases in recent decades, the company has seemed to completely ignore the existence of the Virtual Boy—its abortive 1990s dip into the world of early virtual reality.
—ArsTechnica, 12 Sep. 2025
Garbowit recalls that there were only around sixteen members of Congress lined up behind Thanedor’s abortive resolution—so the fact that Green’s follow-up motion garnered seventy-nine supporters in the caucus is a sign of progress.
—Chris Lehmann, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abortive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abortive
Adjective
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Japanese police trudged through deep mud on Thursday in another unsuccessful day searching for a missing Auburn University student, who vanished after an argument with family over artificial intelligence.—
David K. Li,
NBC news,
4 June 2026
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Efforts to reach Bronstein for comment on Stone’s claims were unsuccessful Thursday.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
4 June 2026
Adjective
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Faced with total defeat, the Democrats finally gave up their futile efforts to undermine the public finance system by blocking Blakeman and agreed to recertify him for matching funds.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
29 May 2026
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Harden may be one of the most prolific scorers of all time, but his attempts at winning a championship have been futile.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
26 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Abortive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abortive. Accessed 5 Jun. 2026.
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