abstraction

American  

[ab-strak-shuhn] / æbˈstræk ʃən /

noun

1. an abstract or general idea or term.

2. the act of considering something as a general quality or characteristic, apart from concrete realities, specific objects, or actual instances.

3. an impractical idea; something visionary and unrealistic.

4. the act of taking away or separating; withdrawal.

   The sensation of cold is due to the abstraction of heat from our bodies.

5. secret removal, especially theft.

6. absent-mindedness; inattention; mental absorption.

7. Fine Arts.

   1. the abstract qualities or characteristics of a work of art.

   2. a work of art, especially a nonrepresentational one, stressing formal relationships.

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abstraction British  

/ æbˈstrækʃən /

noun

1. absence of mind; preoccupation

2. the process of formulating generalized ideas or concepts by extracting common qualities from specific examples

3. an idea or concept formulated in this way

   good and evil are abstractions

4. logic an operator that forms a class name or predicate from any given expression See also lambda calculus

5. an abstract painting, sculpture, etc

6. the act of withdrawing or removing

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Other Word Forms

• abstractional adjective
• abstractive adjective
• abstractively adverb

Etymology

Origin of abstraction

First recorded in 1540–50; from Late Latin abstractiōn-, stem of abstractiō “separation,” literally, “a drawing off,” from abstract(us) “drawn off” + -iō noun suffix; abstract -ion

Example Sentences

Born in the 19th century, Brancusi made his career in 20th century Paris, his work the epitome of Modernist abstraction.

From Los Angeles Times

In the late 1960s, when many British artists were drawn to abstraction, the two declared themselves a living sculpture whose every move was art.

From New York Times

His oeuvre spans six decades in which he has repeatedly explored the possibilities and limits of painting as well as the tension between abstraction and figuration.

From Seattle Times

“Thinking about the window paintings and the way in which she’s merging these multiple realms together, there’s always this tension between representation and figuration and abstraction in her work,” Karasoulas said.

From New York Times

But that happens to many families — my primary quibble with “Skinfolk” is that Guterl’s distanced prose and chronic abstraction holds us back from seeing how this statement applies specifically to his.

From New York Times