Dictionary Home » Dictionary Definitions » abortion

abortion

Listen See in Thesaurus See in a sentence

The definition of abortion is when a pregnancy ends abruptly, either voluntarily or involuntarily, and the fetus is expelled from the womb before it can live on its own.

Types of Abortions

Spontaneous and Induced Abortions

Spontaneous - An abortion that occurs naturally without any medical intervention when there is a physical problem with a pregnancy is called a spontaneous abortion or a miscarriage

Induced - An abortion that is the result of any procedure done by a licensed physician or someone under the supervision of a licensed physician to purposefully end a pregnancy is called an induced abortion.

Within the broader area of induced abortions, there are two basic classifications:

Therapeutic abortion
Elective abortion

Therapeutic Abortion

A therapeutic abortion is done to:

Save the life of a pregnant woman
Preserve a pregnant woman's mental or physical health
Terminate a pregnancy that would result in a child with a fatal congenital disorder
Selectively reduce the number of fetuses born as the result of a high-risk multiple pregnancy

Elective Abortion

An elective abortion is an abortion performed for any other reason - most commonly occurring after contraceptive failure results in an unplanned pregnancy.

Legal Aspects

In the United States, Roe v. Wade is the law that makes it legal for a woman to obtain a medically induced abortion at any point before the fetus becomes viable. This is generally considered to be seven months or 28 weeks, but may occur as early as 24 weeks.

(noun)

An example of an abortion is a miscarriage.

See abortion in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

1. any spontaneous expulsion of an embryo or a fetus before it is sufficiently developed to survive; miscarriage
2. any deliberate procedure that removes, or induces the expulsion of, a living or dead embryo or fetus
an aborted embryo or fetus
anything immature and incomplete or unsuccessful, as a deformed creature, a badly developed plan, etc.
Biol.
1. arrest of development
2. an organ whose development has been arrested

Origin: L abortio: see abort

See abortion in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

a. Induced termination of a pregnancy with destruction of the embryo or fetus.
b. Any of various procedures resulting in the termination of a pregnancy. Also called induced abortion.
See miscarriage.
Cessation of normal growth, especially of an organ or other body part, prior to full development or maturation.
The premature ending or abandonment of an undertaking.
Something that is regarded as poorly made or done.

See abortion in Ologies

Abortion