ABORTION • DICTIONARY ONE.COM • Definition of Abortion

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/əbˈɔrʃən/ Listen

noun

Abortion n.

1.

The act of giving premature birth; particularly, the expulsion of the human fetus prematurely, or before it is capable of sustaining life; miscarriage.

2.

The immature product of an untimely birth; a fetus which has been delivered prematurely due to spontaneous or voluntary abortion, and is dead.

3.

(Biol.) Arrest of development of any organ, so that it remains an imperfect formation or is absorbed.

4.

Any fruit or produce that does not come to maturity, or anything which in its progress, before it is matured or perfect; a complete failure; as, his attempt proved an abortion.

5.

The removal of a fetus from the womb prior to normal delivery in a manner such as to cause the death of the fetus; also called voluntary abortion, or when performed by a physician, therapeutic abortion. Note: In the 1913 Webster there was the following note appended to sense 1: It is sometimes used for the offense of procuring a premature delivery, but strictly the early delivery is the abortion, "causing or procuring abortion" is the full name of the offense.

6.

Something considered to be a repulsive or monstrous variant of a normal object; a monstrosity.

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Etymology of 'Abortion'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Abortion" Quotes from Famous Books

... over. He lay under his memorial, a junk pile of twisted metal, inching his way toward death, the abortion of an abortive miracle, alone, ...

— A Choice of Miracles • James A. Cox

... loathe and detest the Vestiges. 'Tis a rank pill of asafoetida and arsenic, covered with gold leaf. I do, therefore, trust that your contributor has stamped with an iron heel upon the head of the filthy abortion, and put an end to its crawlings. There is not one subject the author handles bearing on life, of which he does ...

— Studies in Literature • John Morley

... concerning abortion, Datu Tongkaling asserted that he considered it "very bad," and that he would prohibit any mabalian who assisted in such a practice from continuing her profession, but he said that despite his orders secret medicines which produce that result are sometimes administered. ...

— The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao - The R. F. Cummings Philippine Expedition • Fay-Cooper Cole

... Oh, think not that the work of the old saint who loved it so well, till the last hour of his existence, is ended for ever; or that the labours of younger brethren so unfinished here, shall never be resumed hereafter, and that all this preparation of years has been a mere abortion, a mockery and delusion! Believe it not! No day of conscientious study for Christ's sake has been spent in vain; no habit of industry or self-denial acquired for Christ's sake has been acquired in vain; nor will the burning zeal to do something for Him who died for them be ever lost in darkness ...

— Parish Papers • Norman Macleod

... having to find by bitter experience, especially in rainy weather, that their Governor's few yards were just his characteristic way of putting down yards which he well knew were to be counted by hundreds. Then, again, we have the so-called San Fernando Waterworks, an abortion, a scandal for which there is no excuse, as the head of the Public Works Department went his own way despite the experience of those who knew better than he, and the protests of those who would have had to pay. Seventeen Thousand Pounds represent the amount of debt with which Governor ...

— West Indian Fables by James Anthony Froude Explained by J. J. Thomas • J. J. (John Jacob) Thomas

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