abstract
About something you can think about but cannot touch or see.
Relating to or existing in thought or as an idea but not having a physical or concrete existence.
A short piece of writing that says the main ideas of a longer text.
A short written statement that gives the main facts or ideas of a book, article, speech, or other work.
To take something away from where it belongs.
To remove or take something away from somewhere, often in a way that separates it from its context.
Describes art made with shapes and colors instead of pictures of real things.
Describing art that does not attempt to represent external reality, but seeks to achieve its effect using shapes, colors, and textures.
- Base: abstract
- Base: abstract
- Plural: abstracts
- Base: abstract
- 3rd Person Singular: abstracts
- Present Participle: abstracting
- Past: abstracted
abstract away
1Hide details to focus on main idea
To remove or ignore details so you can focus on the main idea or structure.
- The software abstracts away the complexity of the hardware.
- Teachers often abstract away difficult details when first introducing a topic.
in the abstract
1Considered generally, not specifically
Thinking about something as a general idea, not in a real situation.
- In the abstract, his plan sounds reasonable, but it may not work in practice.
- She prefers to discuss problems in the abstract rather than deal with details.