Meanings
adjectiveabducent (comparative more abducent, superlative most abducent)
comparative more abducent · superlative most abducent
- obsoleteDrawing away from the median axis of the body, as a muscle; see etymology abducting.First known use late 17ᵗʰ century.
nounabducent (plural abducents)
plural abducents
- obsoleteThat which abducts.
- obsoleteanatomyAn abducens nerve.
Synonyms & antonyms
Opposite
adjectiveespecially of muscles; drawing away from the midline of the body or from an adjacent part
Similar
Opposite
nouna small motor nerve supplying the lateral rectus muscle of the eye
Similar
Broader
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂ep
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂epó
- Proto-Italic*ap
- Latinab
- Latinab-
- Proto-Indo-European*dewk-
- Proto-Indo-European*déwkti
- Proto-Italic*doukō
- Latindūcō
- Latinabducō
- Englishabducent
Borrowed from Latin abducō (“to lead away”).
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Dutch afvoerend
- afvoerendTranslations
Cite this entry
APA
abducent. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abducent
MLA
“abducent.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abducent. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “abducent,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abducent.
Source: abducent on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.