abject

[ ab-jekt, ab-jekt ]

/ ˈæb dʒɛkt, æbˈdʒɛkt /

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adjective

utterly hopeless, miserable, humiliating, or wretched: abject poverty.

contemptible; despicable; base-spirited: an abject coward.

shamelessly servile; slavish.

Obsolete. cast aside.

Words nearby abject

abirritation, abirritative, abishag, abitibi, abiu, abject, abjection, abjective, abjunction, abjuration, abjure

Origin of abject

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin abjectus thrown down (past participle of abicere, abjicere), equivalent to ab- ab- + -jec- throw + -tus past participle suffix

SYNONYMS FOR abject

1 debasing, degrading; miserable.

2 base, mean, low, vile.

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ANTONYMS FOR abject

exalted.

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OTHER WORDS FROM abject

ab·ject·ly, adverbab·ject·ness, ab·ject·ed·ness, nounun·ab·ject, adjectiveun·ab·ject·ly, adverb

un·ab·ject·ness, noun

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH abject

abject object

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for abject

Those facts, Paul said, indicated that Chairman Mao was a tyrannical monster whose people lived “in abject slavery.”
The Secret to Rand Paul’s Foreign Policy: His Father|W. James Antle III|September 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The girls helped their mothers prepare a simple meal as the men smoked outside and reflected on their abject state.
ISIS Robs Christians Fleeing Its Edict in Mosul: Convert, Leave, or Die|Andrew Slater|July 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But in any narrative, if the protagonist is going to be at the center of a sea of abject joy and triumph, someone has to lose.
LeBron James: The Yoko Ono of The Heatles|Robert Silverman|July 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Featuring headache-inducing black-and-red graphics, the Virtual Boy was an abject failure.
The Game You Wear on Your Face: Virtual Reality Is Finally Here|Alec Kubas-Meyer|May 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST

No, this brief delay must be a sign that the implementation of the Affordable Care Act is destined to result in abject failure.
The GOP Is Terrified Obamacare Could Be a Success|Jon Favreau|July 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The Khalifa told off Lupton Bey, who at that time was living in the most abject poverty, as his assistant.
Ten Years' Captivity in the Mahdi's Camp 1882-1892|F. R. Wingate
Divitis servi maxime servi—Servants to the rich are the most abject.
Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources|James Wood
Johnny's abject tone—he who had been so high-chested in the past—may have had its effect upon the boss.
Skyrider|B. M. Bower
The mother was an unlovely object in her abject sorrow and despair.
A True Friend|Adeline Sergeant
Then, in the midst of this abject self-pity, I was stricken with shame.
Richard Carvel, Complete|Winston Churchill

British Dictionary definitions for abject

abject

/ (ˈæbdʒɛkt) /

adjective

utterly wretched or hopeless

miserable; forlorn; dejected

indicating humiliation; submissivean abject apology

contemptible; despicable; servilean abject liar

Derived forms of abject

abjection, nounabjectly, adverbabjectness, noun

Word Origin for abject

C14: (in the sense: rejected, cast out): from Latin abjectus thrown or cast away, from abjicere, from ab- away + jacere to throw

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012