Abo

or ab·o

[ Ab-oh ]

noun,plural Ab·os.
  1. a contemptuous term used to refer to an Australian Aboriginal person.

Origin of Abo

1
First recorded in 1905–10; by shortening; see -o

usage note For Abo

Since Abo is simply a shortened form of Aborigine or Aboriginal, one could easily think that it is as neutral and inoffensive a term as Aussie is for an Australian. However, Abo is as highly offensive to Australian Aboriginal people as nigger is to African Americans in the United States.

Other definitions for ABO (2 of 3)

ABO

abbreviationPhysiology.

Other definitions for Åbo (3 of 3)

Åbo
[ aw-boo ]

noun
  1. Swedish name of Turku.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Abo in a sentence

  • One of the best specimens of such an entertainment we chanced to see was at the old-world city of Åbo.

    Through Finland in Carts | Ethel Brilliana Alec-Tweedie
  • It ran—Annuka, the maid of Åbo, sat at the end of the bridge waiting for a man after her own mind, a man with tender words.

    Through Finland in Carts | Ethel Brilliana Alec-Tweedie
  • We stopped at Åbo, the ancient capital of Finland, justly proud of its stone cathedral.

    Through Finland in Carts | Ethel Brilliana Alec-Tweedie
  • It was really amazing, in the market-place at Åbo, to see the large baskets filled with these little crayfish.

    Through Finland in Carts | Ethel Brilliana Alec-Tweedie
  • Thus too Åbo, the ancient capital of Finland, was called Turku, which in the Swedish language means a market-place.

British Dictionary definitions for Abo (1 of 2)

Abo

/ (ˈæbəʊ) /


nounplural Abos (sometimes not capital) Australian old-fashioned, taboo
    • short for Aborigine

    • (as modifier): an Abo reserve

usage For Abo

This once quite common word is now completely unacceptable

British Dictionary definitions for Åbo (2 of 2)

Åbo

/ (ˈoːbuː) /


noun
  1. the Swedish name for Turku

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