abstraction

/æbˈstrækʃn/ (bre, ipa) · /æbˈstrækʃn/ (ame, ipa) · /ab-ˈstrak-shən əb-/ (ame, mw)

abstraction — noun

  • abstractionsingular
  • abstractionsplural

1. the condition of being so focused on your own thoughts that you become unaware o

1.名詞B2
釋義

the condition of being so focused on your own thoughts that you become unaware of people and events nearby

例句

Omar stared at the rain on the window, lost in abstraction, and did not hear his name called.

collocation: lost in abstraction

Sophie nodded with an air of abstraction while her friend described the trip, but her mind was elsewhere.

pattern: with an air of abstraction

同義詞
反義詞
  • alertness

    the opposite state of being fully aware of your surroundings

  • attentiveness

    actively paying attention rather than lost in thought

文法句型

in abstraction

with an air of abstraction

用法筆記

Uncountable in this sense. Frequently appears in fixed phrases such as 'lost in abstraction' and 'with an air of abstraction.'

常見錯誤

❌I had an abstraction about the project.
✅I was lost in abstraction while thinking about the project.
💡This sense describes a state of mind, not a specific thought or idea.

2. a notion that has no physical form and cannot be seen or touched — words like 'f

2.名詞B2
釋義

a notion that has no physical form and cannot be seen or touched — words like 'freedom', 'beauty', or 'justice' belong to this category, because you cannot hold them in your hand the way you can hold a stone

例句

William argued that 'democracy' is not just an abstraction but something people experience every day through voting.

Young children struggle with abstractions like 'honesty' because they think in terms of concrete actions.

pattern: abstraction like [concept]

同義詞
  • concept

    more neutral and broader in scope

  • notion

    less formal and often vaguer

  • idea

    more general and can refer to concrete plans too

反義詞
  • concrete thing

    a physical object you can see and touch

  • reality

    the actual world as opposed to theoretical ideas

文法句型

an abstraction

abstract noun like [concept]

用法筆記

Often used with a negative connotation when paired with words like 'cold', 'empty', or 'mere', implying something detached from reality. When countable, it refers to a specific concept; when uncountable, it refers to the general nature of abstract thinking.

常見錯誤

❌My love for you is an abstraction.
✅Love is often treated as an abstraction in poetry.
💡This sense describes a category of idea, not a personal feeling.

3. a way of making art that relies on colour, shape, and line instead of depicting

3.名詞B2
釋義

a way of making art that relies on colour, shape, and line instead of depicting recognizable people, places, or objects in a realistic way

例句

The museum's new wing displays twentieth-century abstraction, including works by Kandinsky and Mondrian.

domain: art history reference

Santi started his career painting portraits but gradually moved toward abstraction.

pattern: move toward abstraction

同義詞
反義詞
  • figurative art

    art that represents real people and objects

  • realism

    art that aims to depict things as they actually look

文法句型

move toward abstraction

an exhibition of abstraction

用法筆記

Uncountable in this sense. Mentioning a specific artist or period (e.g. 'European abstraction', 'post-war abstraction') is common in art writing. Contrast with 'figurative art' (art that represents real things).

常見錯誤

❌I bought an abstraction for my living room.
✅I bought an abstract painting for my living room.
💡'Abstraction' as a style is uncountable; for a single work, say 'abstract painting' or 'abstract work.'

4. pulling one part out of a larger group or system, or looking at a single quality

4.名詞C1
釋義

pulling one part out of a larger group or system, or looking at a single quality of something while ignoring everything else connected to it

例句

The abstraction of salt from seawater is a simple process that involves evaporation.

pattern: abstraction of [X] from [Y]

Dov's research involves the abstraction of key themes from hundreds of historical documents.

同義詞
  • extraction

    more concrete; usually refers to physical removal

  • separation

    broader; can mean keeping things apart rather than removing one

  • isolation

    implies studying something on its own

反義詞

文法句型

abstraction of [something] from [something]

用法筆記

Common in academic and technical writing. The preposition 'from' almost always follows this sense. In formal logic and philosophy, 'abstraction' can refer to the mental act of isolating a property (e.g. redness) from the object that has it.

常見錯誤

❌The abstraction of the river was blocked.
✅The abstraction of water from the river was blocked.
💡Specify what is being extracted.

5. a design principle in computer science where complex internal systems are hidden

5.名詞C1
釋義

a design principle in computer science where complex internal systems are hidden behind a simple interface, so that a user or programmer can work with the system without understanding every detail of how it works internally

例句

Sanjay explained that a web browser provides a layer of abstraction between the user and the internet's complex protocols.

collocation: layer of abstraction

Without abstraction in operating systems, every programmer would need to know exactly how the hard drive stores data.

同義詞
  • encapsulation

    more specific; means bundling data with the methods that operate on it

  • modularity

    related principle; dividing a system into separate modules

  • hiding complexity

    descriptive phrase rather than a single term

反義詞

文法句型

layer of abstraction

abstraction layer

用法筆記

Uncountable. Frequently appears in compound nouns: 'abstraction layer', 'data abstraction', 'network abstraction'. In software engineering, 'levels of abstraction' describe how close to (or far from) the hardware a programmer works.

常見錯誤

❌The abstraction is broken.
✅The abstraction layer is broken.
💡In computing, specify the type of abstraction rather than using the word alone.