abortive

comparative more abortive · superlative most abortive

1. obsoleteProduced by abortion; born prematurely and therefore unnatural.First known use c. 1400–mid 1700s

   an abortive child

   1 more example

   Thou elvish-marked, abortive, rooting hog!

   c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]

2. Coming to nothing; failing in its effect. .First known use late 1500s

   an abortive attempt

   5 more examples

   […] and with utter loss of being / Threatens him, plung'd in that abortive gulf.

   1667, John Milton, Paradise Lost, published 1799

   The king in vain excused his hasty retreats and abortive enterprises

   1838, William H. Prescott, History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella

   He made a salutation, or, to speak nearer the truth, an ill-defined, abortive attempt at curtsy.

   1851 April 9, Nathaniel Hawthorne, The House of the Seven Gables, a Romance, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, →OCLC

   I made one last abortive attempt to interview Ethel, waiting in the now-familiar eaves as voices murmured on the other side of the door, discussing.

   2012 January 23, Aaron Lake Smith, “Peeling Oniontown”, in VICE, archived from the original on 02 May 2025

   Not surprisingly, ERS has that market covered. It now owns all five of the vehicles fitted with generators for the abortive Nightstar services through the Channel Tunnel.

   2025 October 29, James Steward tells Joe Campbell, “Thriving on the stock exchange”, in RAIL, number 1047, page 46

   Synonyms: miscarrying, fruitless, unsuccessful, useless

3. biologyImperfectly formed or developed; rudimentary; sterile.First known use mid 1700s

   an abortive organ

   2 more examples

   an abortive stamen

   an abortive ovule

4. raremedicineCausing abortion; abortifacient.

   abortive medicines

   1809, Bartholomew Parr, Medical Dictionary

   1 more example

   Each country may have a different prevalence of infectious abortive agents. The most common agents of abortion in cattle are Brucella spp., Campylobacter spp., Chlamydiaceae, Coxiella burnetii, Leptospira spp., […]

   2018 May, Carla Sebastiania, Ludovica Curcioa, Marcella Ciulloa, Deborah Crucianib, Silvia Crottib, Cristina Pescab, Martina Torricellia, Martina Sebastianellia, Andrea Felicic, Massimo Biagetti, “A multi-screening Fast qPCR approach to the identification of abortive agents in ruminants”, in Journal of Microbiological Methods, volume 148, →DOI, page 12

5. medicineCutting short; acting to halt or slow the progress (of a disease).

   abortive treatment of typhoid fever

   1 more example

   Even with prophylaxis, children often experience episodic breakthrough headaches that require abortive treatment. […] Abortive therapies in the ED include dopamine antagonists and anti-inflammatory agents.

   2016 December, David C. Sheridan, Garth D. Meckler, “Inpatient Pediatric Migraine Treatment: Does Choice of Abortive Therapy Affect Length of Stay?”, in The Journal of Pediatrics, volume 179, →DOI, page 211

6. medicineHaving a short and mild progression, without pronounced symptoms.
7. Made from the skin of a still-born animal.

   abortive vellum

plural abortives

1. obsoleteSomeone or something born or brought forth prematurely; an abortion.First known use Attested from around (1150 to 1350) until the mid 18ᵗʰ century.
2. obsoleteA fruitless effort.First known use Attested from the early 17ᵗʰ century until the early 18ᵗʰ century.
3. obsoleteA medicine that causes abortion, an abortifacient.
4. obsoleteA medicine or treatment acting to halt or slow the progress of a disease.

   Naphthalin was praised by Rosbach as an abortive in typhoid fever; Kraemer in 1886, Wilcox in 1887, Sehwald in 1889 and Wolff of Philadelphia in 1891 confirmed Rosbach's observations.

   1897 August 7, E. Viko, “On the Treatment of Typhoid Fever”, in The Journal of the American Medical Association, volume 29, number 6, Chicago, Ill., →DOI, page 274

present singular third person abortives · participle present abortiving · participle past abortived · past abortived

1. obsoletetransitiveTo cause an abortion; to render without fruit.First known use Attested only in the 17ᵗʰ century.