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- Dictionaryabortive/əˈbɔːtɪv/
adjective
- 1. failing to produce the intended result: "the rebel officers who led the abortive coup were shot"
- 2. (of a virus infection) failing to produce symptoms.
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ABORTIVE definition: 1. An abortive attempt or plan has to be stopped because it has failed: 2. An abortive attempt or…. Learn more.
Abortive definition: failing to succeed; unsuccessful. See examples of ABORTIVE used in a sentence.
1. obsolete : prematurely born. 2. : fruitless, unsuccessful. 3. : imperfectly formed or developed. 4. : tending to cut short. abortively adverb. abortiveness noun. Synonyms. barren. bootless. empty. fruitless. futile. ineffective. ineffectual. inefficacious. otiose. profitless. unavailing.
Abortive is a variation of abort, which means to end something, so something abortive never reaches its end point. If you tried like crazy to run a marathon but couldn't finish, your efforts were abortive. If someone tripped you during the marathon, their efforts were abortive too.
Definition of abortive adjective in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.
adj. 1. Failing to accomplish an intended objective; fruitless: an abortive attempt to conclude the negotiations. 2. Biology Partially or imperfectly developed: an abortive organ. 3. Causing or meant to cause abortion; abortifacient. a·bor′tive·ly adv. a·bor′tive·ness n.
Jul 10, 2024 · abortive (comparative more abortive, superlative most abortive) Produced by abortion; born prematurely and therefore unnatural. [c. 1400–mid 1700s]
