 2 definitions found
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
abortion
noun
1: termination of pregnancy
2: failure of a plan [syn: {miscarriage}]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Abortion \A*bor"tion\ ([.a]*b[^o]r"sh[u^]n), noun [L. abortio, fr.
aboriri. See {Abort}.]
1. The act of giving premature birth; particularly, the
expulsion of the human fetus prematurely, or before it is
capable of sustaining life; miscarriage.
2. The immature product of an untimely birth; a fetus which
has been delivered prematurely due to spontaneous or
voluntary abortion, and is dead.
[1913 Webster +PJC]
3. (Biol.) Arrest of development of any organ, so that it
remains an imperfect formation or is absorbed.
4. Any fruit or produce that does not come to maturity, or
anything which in its progress, before it is matured or
perfect; a complete failure; as, his attempt proved an
abortion.
5. the removal of a fetus from the womb prior to normal
delivery in a manner such as to cause the death of the
fetus; also called {voluntary abortion}, or when performed
by a physician, {therapeutic abortion}.
[PJC]
Note: In the 1913 Webster there was the following note
appended to sense 1:
[hand] It is sometimes used for the offense of
procuring a premature delivery, but strictly the early
delivery is the abortion, ''causing or procuring
abortion'' is the full name of the offense. --Abbott.
[PJC]
6. something considered to be a repulsive or monstrous
variant of a normal object; a monstrosity.
[PJC]
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