abortedadj.
/əˈbɔːtᵻd/, U.S. /əˈbɔrdəd/ 1.
a. Of a child: †born prematurely (obsolete). In modern use: (spec. of a fetus) extracted or expelled from the womb by abortion; (also, of a pregnancy) ended by abortion.
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1604 T. Wright Passions of Minde (new ed.) Ep. Ded. sig. A2 [I] could not tell whether to reioyce to see mine aborted infant revived.
1850 N.-Y. Jrnl. Med. 5 55 A girl was accused of procuring abortion. The aborted fœtus, of about the sixth month, was acephalous.
1915 Trans. Amer. Microsc. Soc. 34 162 Aborted embryos and those obtained by operation..should always be saved and preserved by immersing them intact in 10 per cent formalin or in Zenker's fluid.
1956 Hereditas 42 5 She had studied..the chromosomes of liver mitoses in aborted human embryos.
1970 Amer. Lit. 41 617 So many of the plays deal on a family level with..the shunned or aborted pregnancy.
2002 S. Burke Deadwater vii. 64 Macha was the patron saint of stillborn, miscarried and aborted foetuses.
b. Biology. Arrested in development so as to remain in a rudimentary or sterile state, or to disappear entirely. Also: reduced or eliminated in the course of evolution, as judged by comparison to fully developed structures of other organisms which are presumed to be equivalent (now rare).
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the world > life > biology > biological processes > development, growth, or degeneration > [adjective] > imperfectly developed or immature
ungrown1593
immature1610
unsizeable1746
aborted1754
agenesic1900
1754 J. Justice Scots Gardiners Director 133 Trim their Roots, give them a Size bigger Pots and new Tan; which..will prevent them from flying up into an untimely and aborted Fruit.
1839 Lancet 26 Jan. 675/1 This application had the effect of preventing the full development of the pustule, and of transforming it into a vesicle, or aborted pustule.
1859 C. Darwin Origin of Species v. 145 When this occurs, the adherent nectary is quite aborted.
1867 J. Hogg Microscope (ed. 6) ii. i. 324 Thorns, such as those of the rose, are aborted branches.
1870 G. Rolleston Forms Animal Life Introd. 109 This rudimentary or aborted condition of the hepatic organ.
1955 G. Grigson Englishman's Flora 182 The typical Houseleek on the roofs of Europe has partly aborted stamens, and probably has no wild existence anywhere.
1961 J. Stubblefield Davies's Introd. Palaeontol. (ed. 3) ii. 50 There is only one adductor muscle-impression, posterior in position, the anterior adductor being aborted in the adult.
1997 Plant & Soil 192 181 Supplying Zn to subsoil..markedly decreased the number of aborted and unfilled pods.
2. figurative. Imperfect, not fully or properly developed, deformed. Also: (of a plan, etc.) brought to a premature or fruitless end; frustrated, thwarted, abandoned. Cf. abortive adj. 2.
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the world > action or operation > failure or lack of success > [adjective] > abandoned due to failure
aborted1917
1611 J. Donne Funerall Elegie in Anat. World sig. B7 Sickly, alas, short-liu'd, aborted bee Those Carkas verses, whose soule is not shee.
1778 B. Romans Ann. Troubles Netherlands I. 83 The states of Bradant..passed a resolve, to agree with the prince, and to renew the aborted treaty of Breda.
1891 Century July 434/2 Her poor little aborted powers of reasoning had of course left her at the first onslaught.
1917 D. H. Parker Self & Nature iv. 94 The purely speculative idea is an aborted plan.
1924 Glasgow Herald 9 Apr. 10/3 Mr Wheatley having apparently availed himself of Mr Simon's bill to construct the second clause of his aborted measure.
1976 Billings (Montana) Gaz. 7 July 3 a/2 Sudanese President Jaafar Numeiry broke off diplomatic relations with Libya Tuesday in reprisal for what he said was its role in last week's aborted coup against his regime.
1998 K. Elmslie Routine Disruptions 204 Old age longings fester, Misremembered in a mist—Fragments distorted, aborted shapes.
2004 Spin June 69/2 Bad deals, worse behavior, and an aborted opening slot on an AC/DC tour squelched any chance at U.S. success.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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adj.1604