Ab*strac"tion*al (&?;), a. Pertaining to abstraction.
Ab*strac"tion*ist, n. An idealist. Emerson.
Ab`strac*ti"tious (&?;), a. Obtained from plants by distillation. [Obs.] Crabb.
Ab*strac"tive (&?;), a. [Cf. F. abstractif.] Having the power of abstracting; of an abstracting nature. "The abstractive faculty." I. Taylor.
Ab*strac"tive*ly, adv. In a abstract manner; separately; in or by itself. Feltham.
Ab*strac"tive*ness, n. The quality of being abstractive; abstractive property.
Ab"stract`ly (#; 277), adv. In an abstract state or manner; separately; absolutely; by itself; as, matter abstractly considered.
Ab"stract`ness, n. The quality of being abstract. "The abstractness of the ideas." Locke.
Ab*stringe" (&?;), v. t. [L ab + stringere, strictum, to press together.] To unbind. [Obs.] Bailey.
Ab*strude" (&?;), v. t. [L. abstrudere. See Abstruse.] To thrust away. [Obs.] Johnson.
Ab*struse" (&?;), a. [L. abstrusus, p. p. of abstrudere to thrust away, conceal; ab, abs + trudere to thrust; cf. F. abstrus. See Threat.] 1. Concealed or hidden out of the way. [Obs.]
The eternal eye whose sight discerns
Abstrusest thoughts.
Milton.
2. Remote from apprehension; difficult to be comprehended or understood; recondite; as, abstruse learning.
Profound and abstruse topics.
Milman.
Ab*struse"ly, adv. In an abstruse manner.
Ab*struse"ness, n. The quality of being abstruse; difficulty of apprehension. Boyle.
Ab*stru"sion (&?;), n. [L. abstrusio. See Abstruse.] The act of thrusting away. [R.] Ogilvie.
Ab*stru"si*ty (b*str"s*t), n. Abstruseness; that which is abstruse. [R.] Sir T. Browne.
Ab*sume" (b*sm"), v. t. [L. absumere, absumptum; ab + sumere to take.] To consume gradually; to waste away. [Obs.] Boyle.
Ab*sump"tion (b*smp"shn; 215), n. [L. absumptio. See Absume.] Act of wasting away; a consuming; extinction. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.
Ab*surd" (b*sûrd"), a. [L. absurdus harsh-sounding; ab + (prob) a derivative fr. a root svar to sound; not connected with surd: cf. F. absurde. See Syringe.] Contrary to reason or propriety; obviously and flatly opposed to manifest truth; inconsistent with the plain dictates of common sense; logically contradictory; nonsensical; ridiculous; as, an absurd person, an absurd opinion; an absurd dream.
This proffer is absurd and reasonless.
Shak.
'This phrase absurd to call a villain great.
Pope. p. 9
Syn. -- Foolish; irrational; ridiculous; preposterous; inconsistent; incongruous. -- Absurd, Irrational, Foolish, Preposterous. Of these terms, irrational is the weakest, denoting that which is plainly inconsistent with the dictates of sound reason; as, an irrational course of life. Foolish rises higher, and implies either a perversion of that faculty, or an absolute weakness or fatuity of mind; as, foolish enterprises. Absurd rises still higher, denoting that which is plainly opposed to received notions of propriety and truth; as, an absurd man, project, opinion, story, argument, etc. Preposterous rises still higher, and supposes an absolute inversion in the order of things; or, in plain terms, a "putting of the cart before the horse;" as, a preposterous suggestion, preposterous conduct, a preposterous regulation or law.
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Ab*surd" (b*sûrd"), n. An absurdity. [Obs.] Pope.
Ab*surd"i*ty (-*t), n.; pl. Absurdities (-tz). [L. absurditas: cf. F. absurdite.] 1. The quality of being absurd or inconsistent with obvious truth, reason, or sound judgment. "The absurdity of the actual idea of an infinite number." Locke.