Definition of: abstraction

(ab·strak′shən) noun
1. State of being abstracted; an abstracting.
2. An abstract idea; a theory.
3. Separation; removal; theft.
4. Absence of mind; preoccupation.
5. Seclusion of life, as by a hermit; withdrawal from worldly objects.
6. The quality that makes a work of art generalized or universal, as distinguished from literal or concrete, present in varying degrees in widely differing art forms.
7. An art form or a work of art in which the qualities are either predominantly or totally abstract: opposed to naturalism, realism. Compare NON-OBJECTIVE ART. [<L abstractio, -onis < abstractus.
See ABSTRACT.]