abolition
Americannoun
-
the act of abolishing or the state of being abolished: the abolition of capital punishment;
the abolition of war;
the abolition of capital punishment;
the abolition of unfair taxes.
- Synonyms:
- repeal, revocation, invalidation, nullification, elimination, eradication, annihilation
- Antonyms:
- establishment
-
the legal prohibition of slavery, especially the institutional enslavement of Black people in the U.S.
noun
-
the act of abolishing or the state of being abolished; annulment
-
(often capital) (in British territories) the ending of the slave trade (1807) or the ending of slavery (1833): accomplished after a long campaign led by William Wilberforce
-
(often capital) (in the US) the emancipation of the slaves, accomplished by the Emancipation Proclamation issued in 1863 and ratified in 1865
Other Word Forms
- abolitionary adjective
- abolitionism noun
- abolitionist noun
- nonabolition noun
- proabolition adjective
Etymology
Origin of abolition
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin abolitiōn- (stem of abolitiō ), equivalent to abolit(us) “effaced, destroyed,” past participle of abolēre “to destroy, efface” + -iōn- noun suffix; abolish, -ion
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He pointed to a reduction in the longest NHS waits, the expansion of free childcare and the abolition of peak rail fares as examples of delivery by his government.
From BBC • Mar. 29, 2026
One goal of the Mellon-supported course at Statesville is building a movement that “centers abolition,” meaning the abolition of prisons, according to the proposal I acquired via a records request.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026
Oli's political career stretches nearly six decades, a period that saw a decade-long civil war and Nepal's 2008 abolition of its monarchy.
From Barron's • Feb. 16, 2026
The purpose of abolition is, in part, accountability for the crimes its agents and administrators have committed, but it would be a worthy and necessary goal anyhow.
From Slate • Jan. 12, 2026
And though the controversy did not immediately bring the abolition of slavery, the end was in sight.
From "Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science" by Marc Aronson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
