ENGLISH
REFERENCE

abstractive

adj.
C1 Advanced ab·strac·tive

adj. describing something that is difficult to understand or not based on real facts. It can also describe a way of writing or speaking that is very formal and uses complex ideas.

adj. relating to abstraction or the use of abstract concepts; difficult to interpret or lacking concrete detail. Often describes a style of writing that is overly complex or formal.


SIMPLE

The professor's abstractive style made the lecture hard to follow.

CONTEXTUAL

The report was criticized for being too abstractive, using technical jargon that confused the general public.

COMPLEX

While the theory is abstractive in its initial formulation, its practical applications in engineering are remarkably straightforward and intuitive.

Origin

From Middle English abstractif, from Medieval Latin abstractivus, from Latin abstractus (“drawn away”) + -ivus (“-ive”). Equivalent to abstract + -ive.

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