abstraction
UK[əbˈstrækʃn]US[əbˈstrækʃn]
n
a general idea or quality rather than an actual person, object, or event
n
the action of considering something in a general way or separately from concrete realities
n
something that exists only as an idea
Morpheme Breakdown
abs
tract
ion
abs
away
tract
pull, draw
ion
action or state
Etymology
the word "abstraction" originates from the latin verb abstrahere, meaning "to drag away" or "to pull away." this verb is composed of the prefix abs- (away) and trahere (to pull). in medieval latin, the term abstractio was used in philosophical contexts to describe the mental process of separating an idea or quality from its physical embodiment. over time, this literal sense of "drawing away" evolved into the modern conceptual meaning, referring to the act of considering something in isolation from its specific details or the resulting general idea itself.
Analysis
Structure: abs (away) + tract (pull, draw) + ion (action or state)
abs: latin origin, a prefix meaning "away from" or "off."
tract: latin origin, from the root of the verb trahere, meaning "to pull" or "to draw."
ion: latin origin, a suffix forming nouns denoting an action, process, or state.
Examples
the concept of justice is an abstraction that can be hard to define.
his paintings moved from realism towards greater abstraction.
in mathematics, we use abstraction to find patterns common to different problems.