English - Etymology

From Latin abductiō (“robbing; abduction”), from abdūcō (“take or lead away”), from ab (“away”) + dūcō (“to lead”).

• (physiology): From French, from Latin abductus.
• Compare French abduction.

English - Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /əbˈdʌk.ʃn̩/
• (US) IPA^(key): /æbˈdʌk.ʃn̩/, /æbˈdək.ʃn̩/, /əbˈdək.ʃn̩/

English - Noun

abduction (plural abductions)

1. Leading away; a carrying away. [Early 17^th century.]
2. (physiology) The act of abducing or abducting; a drawing apart; the movement which separates a limb or other part from the axis, or middle line, of the body. [Mid 17^th century.]
3. (logic) A syllogism or form of argument in which the major premise is evident, but the minor is only probable. [Late 17^th century.]
   • 2005, Ronnie Cann, Ruth Kempson, Lutz Marten, The Dynamics of Language, an Introduction, page 256:

     The significance of such a step is that it is not morphologically triggered: it is a step of abduction, and what is required here is a meta-level process of reasoning.

4. The wrongful, and usually forcible, carrying off of a human being. [Mid 18^th century.]

   the abduction of a child

Usage notes

• In Gregg shorthand (version: Centennial, Series 90, DJS, Simplified, Anniversary, Pre-Anniversary) the word is represented: a - b - d - u - k - sh

Synonyms

• (legal, carrying off of human being): kidnapping
• (logic): retroduction
• (determining most plausible explanation): retroduction

Antonyms

• (physiology): adduction

Derived terms

• alien abduction

Related terms

• abduce

Translations

English - References

1. ^ Elliott K. Dobbie, C. William Dunmore, Robert K. Barnhart, et al. (editors), Chambers Dictionary of Etymology (Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2004 [1998], ISBN 0550142304), page 2
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3} Lesley Brown (editor), The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, 5th edition (Oxford University Press, 2003 [1933], ISBN 978-0-19-860575-7), page 3

French - Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /abdyksjɔ̃/

French - Etymology

From Latin abductiō (“robbing; abduction”), from abdūcō (“take or lead away”).

French - Noun

abduction f (plural abductions)

1. (physiology) Abductive movement; abduction.
2. (logic, computing) Abductive reasoning; abduction.

French - External Links

• “abduction” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Interlingua - Etymology

From Latin abductiō (“robbing; abduction”), from abdūcō (“take or lead away”).

Interlingua - Noun

abduction (plural abductiones)

1. abduction

Rima