ablative absolute

American  

noun

Latin Grammar.

1. a construction not dependent upon any other part of the sentence, consisting of a noun and a participle, noun and adjective, or two nouns, in which both members are in the ablative case, as Latin viā factā, “the road having been made.”

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ablative absolute British  

noun

1. an absolute construction in Latin grammar in which a governor noun and a modifier in the ablative case function as a sentence modifier; for example, hostibus victis, "the enemy having been beaten"

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Etymology

Origin of ablative absolute

First recorded in 1520–30

Example Sentences

But apparently, only a few youngsters mull over the ablative absolute out of sheer joy.

From Time Magazine Archive

She could never master the ablative absolute, nor what used to be called at Brossard's le que retranché, nor see the necessity of demonstrating by A + B what was sufficiently obvious to her without.

From The Martian by Du Maurier, George

And he says 'having no children'—in Latin the words may mean in case he had none, being in the ablative absolute.

From Sant' Ilario by Crawford, F. Marion (Francis Marion)

As for the ablative absolute, its reconstruction and regeneration have been the inspiring principle of my studious manhood.

From Average Jones by Adams, Samuel Hopkins

The pupils become so eager to see what 16Cæsar will do next that they cannot afford the time to stare long at a mere ablative absolute.

From The Vitalized School by Pearson, Francis B.