abdominal
Americanadjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of abdominal
Explanation
Anything abdominal relates to the midsection of your body, just below your chest and above your pelvis. Abdominal muscles are sometimes called “abs” and they’re the muscles in your abdomen. All abdominal things relate to the belly area. If your stomach hurts, you have abdominal pain. Sit-ups are abdominal exercises. Do enough sit-ups and you'll have washboard abs because the rippled muscles look like, well, a washboard. Any stomach surgery is a type of abdominal surgery. Sometimes abdominal is used as a noun that’s short for abdominal muscle.
Vocabulary lists containing abdominal
Turtles All the Way Down
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Hot Zone
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Stuart Little
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
Abdominal fat disrupts how the body uses insulin, making it harder to control blood sugar.
From BBC • Apr. 12, 2025
Abdominal pain with E. coli is also usually worse than it is for other diarrheal illnesses, said Dr. William Miller, an infectious disease physician at Houston Methodist Hospital.
From Seattle Times • May 7, 2024
Abdominal pain and diarrhea can also occur with high intakes of prebiotics.
From Salon • Feb. 20, 2024
Dugan helped create the Program for Abdominal and Pelvic Health at RUSH, which treats several types of conditions, including urinary incontinence.
From Science Daily • Jan. 14, 2024
Finally recognizing that words can never hurt, but sticks and stones can sure break bones, they invented the Abdominal Snowman.
From "An Abundance of Katherines" by John Green
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.
