abortive
/əˈbɔɹ.tɪv/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 2.67 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
3
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Coming to nothing; failing in its effect. .
adj
adj
adj
Having a short and mild progression, without pronounced symptoms.
adj
Made from the skin of a still-born animal.
Example Sentences
- "an abortive child"
- "Thou elvish-marked, abortive, rooting hog!"
- "an abortive attempt"
- "[…] and with utter loss of being / Threatens him, plung'd in that abortive gulf."
- "The king in vain excused his hasty retreats and abortive enterprises"
- "He made a salutation, or, to speak nearer the truth, an ill-defined, abortive attempt at curtsy."
Etymology
First attested in 1382, with the meaning "causing stillbirth or miscarriage". From Middle English abortif, from Old French abortif, from Latin abortīvus (“causing abortion”), from aborior (“miscarry, disappear”), from ab (“amiss”) + orior (“appear, be born, arise”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: abortif, abortīvus
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /əˈbɔɹ.tɪv/
- British English: /əˈbɔː.tɪv/
Usage
Inflected Forms
more abortive (comparative)
most abortive (superlative)
abortives (plural)
abortives (present, singular)
abortiving (participle, present)
abortived (participle, past)
abortived (past)