a·bor·tive

(ə-bôr′tĭv)

adj.

1. Failing to accomplish an intended objective; fruitless: an abortive attempt to conclude the negotiations.

2. Biology Partially or imperfectly developed: an abortive organ.

3. Causing or meant to cause abortion; abortifacient.

a·bor′tive·ly adv.

a·bor′tive·ness n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

abortive

(əˈbɔːtɪv)

adj

1. failing to achieve a purpose; fruitless

2. (Biology) (of organisms) imperfectly developed; rudimentary

3. (Medicine) causing abortion; abortifacient

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

a•bor•tive

(əˈbɔr tɪv)

adj.

1. failing to succeed; unsuccessful; fruitless: an abortive rebellion.

2. born prematurely.

3. imperfectly developed; rudimentary.

4. producing or intended to produce abortion; abortifacient.

5. acting to halt progress of a disease.

[1300–50; < Latin abortīvus. See abort, -ive]

a•bor′tive•ly, adv.

a•bor′tive•ness, n.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Adj.

abortive - failing to accomplish an intended result; "an abortive revolt"; "a stillborn plot to assassinate the President"

stillborn, unsuccessful

unfruitful - not fruitful; not conducive to abundant production

abortive

adjective failed, failing, useless, vain, unsuccessful, idle, ineffective, futile, fruitless, unproductive, ineffectual, miscarried, unavailing, bootless an abortive attempt to prevent him from taking office

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

فَاشِل

neúspěšnýnezdařený

fejlslagenforfejletmislykket

abbrechenabgetriebenesAbort abortiv abtreibend

abortivo

abortif prématuré raté

sikertelen

árangurslaus

fallito prematuro

abortivforgjeves

абортивный

başarısızyarıda kalmış

失败的

abortive

[əˈbɔːtɪv] ADJ

1. (= failed) [attempt, plan] → fracasado, frustrado

2. (Med) [method, medicine] → abortivo

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

abortive

[əˈbɔː^rtɪv] adj [coup] → manqué(e); [attempt, bid] → avorté(e); [raid, mission] → avorté(e); [talks] → qui ont échoué

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

abortive

adj

(= unsuccessful) attempt, plan → gescheitert, fehlgeschlagen; to be abortive → scheitern, fehlschlagen

(Med) drug → abortiv (form), → abtreibend

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

abortive

[əˈbɔːtɪv] adj (Med) → abortivo/a (fig) (plan) → fallito/a, mancato/a; (attempt) → vano/a, infruttuoso/a

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

abort

(əˈboːt) verb

1. to lose or bring about the loss of (an unborn child) from the womb.

2. (of a plan etc) to (cause to) come to nothing.

3. to stop or abandon (a space mission, eg the firing of a rocket) before it is completed.

aˈbortion (-ʃən) noun

aˈbortive (-tiv) adjective

unsuccessful. an abortive attempt to climb the mountain.

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

In short, she returned from both, plainly convinced, not only that her scheme of reconciliation had proved abortive, but that she must for ever give over all thoughts of bringing it about by any means whatever.

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The history of Germany is a history of wars between the emperor and the princes and states; of wars among the princes and states themselves; of the licentiousness of the strong, and the oppression of the weak; of foreign intrusions, and foreign intrigues; of requisitions of men and money disregarded, or partially complied with; of attempts to enforce them, altogether abortive, or attended with slaughter and desolation, involving the innocent with the guilty; of general inbecility, confusion, and misery.

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Ellis, in his 'Polynesian Researches', gives some interesting accounts of the abortive attempts made by the ''Tahiti Mission'' to establish a branch Mission upon certain islands of the group.

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By one of those caprices of the mind which we are perhaps most subject to in early youth, I at once gave up my former occupations, set down natural history and all its progeny as a deformed and abortive creation, and entertained the greatest disdain for a would-be science which could never even step within the threshold of real knowledge.

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Nell returned a satisfactory reply, and Mrs Jarley, after sticking a great many pins into various parts of her figure, and making several abortive attempts to obtain a full view of her own back, was at last satisfied with her appearance, and went forth majestically.

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What he had told me, in his room, about his belief in its disseminating the statements pasted on it, which were nothing but old leaves of abortive Memorials, might have been a fancy with him sometimes; but not when he was out, looking up at the kite in the sky, and feeling it pull and tug at his hand.

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One of these virtuosi seemed to think that I might be an embryo, or abortive birth.

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If he were mad, it was the consequence, and not the cause, of an aimless and abortive life.

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Yolland--the Sergeant's positive conviction that Rosanna had hidden something at the Shivering Sand, and the Sergeant's absolute ignorance as to what that something might be-- all these strange results of the abortive inquiry into the loss of the Moonstone were clearly present to me again, when we reached the quicksand, and walked out together on the low ledge of rocks called the South Spit.

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

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I proceed, then, from the morning which followed our abortive chase of the convict and our other strange experiences upon the moor.

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And either tropic now 'Gan thunder, and both ends of heaven; the clouds From many a horrid rift abortive poured Fierce rain with lightning mixed, water with fire, In ruin reconciled; nor slept the winds Within their stony caves, but rushed abroad From the four hinges of the world, and fell On the vexed wilderness, whose tallest pines, Though rooted deep as high, and sturdiest oaks, Bowed their stiff necks, loaden with stormy blasts, Or torn up sheer.

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