different between abortive vs trifling

English

Etymology

First attested in 1382, with the meaning "causing stillbirth or miscarriage". From Middle English, from Old French abortif, from Latin abort?vus (“causing abortion”), from aborior (“miscarry, disappear”), from ab (“amiss”) + orior (“appear, be born, arise”).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /??b??.t?v/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /??b??.t?v/

Adjective

abortive (comparative more abortive, superlative most abortive)

1. (obsolete) Produced by abortion; born prematurely and therefore unnatural. [Attested from around (1350 to 1470) until the mid 18^th century.]
   • 1592, William Shakespeare, Richard III, Act I, sc. 3:

     Thou elvish-marked, abortive, rooting hog!

2. Coming to nothing; failing in its effect[First attested in the late 16^th century.].

   Synonyms: miscarrying, fruitless, unsuccessful

   • 1851, Nathaniel Hawthorne, The House of Seven Gables, Chapter 7:

     He made a salutation, or, to speak nearer the truth, an ill-defined, abortive attempt at curtsy.
3. (biology) Imperfectly formed or developed; rudimentary; sterile. [First attested in the mid 18^th century.]

4. (pharmacology, medicine, rare, attributive) Causing abortion; abortifacient
   • (Can we find and add a quotation of Parr to this entry?)
5. (medicine) Cutting short; acting to halt or slow the progress (of a disease).

6. Made from the skin of a still-born animal.

Derived terms

• abortiveness

Translations

Noun

abortive (plural abortives)

1. (obsolete) Someone or something born or brought forth prematurely; an abortion. [Attested from around (1150 to 1350) until the mid 18^th century.]
2. (obsolete) A fruitless effort. [Attested from the early 17^th century until the early 18^th century.]
3. (obsolete) A medicine to which is attributed the property of causing abortion, abortifacient.

Translations

Verb

abortive (third-person singular simple present abortives, present participle abortiving, simple past and past participle abortived)

1. (transitive, obsolete) To cause an abortion; to render without fruit. [Attested only in the 17^th century.]

References

• abortive in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

French

Adjective

abortive

1. feminine singular of abortif

German

Adjective

abortive

1. inflection of abortiv:
   1. strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
   2. strong nominative/accusative plural
   3. weak nominative all-gender singular
   4. weak accusative feminine/neuter singular

Italian

Adjective

abortive

1. feminine plural of abortivo

Anagrams

• breviato

Latin

Adjective

abort?ve

1. vocative masculine singular of abort?vus

Norwegian Bokmål

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ab???i???/, /ab???ti???/
• Rhymes: -i???
• Hyphenation: ab?or?ti?ve
• Homophone: abortivet

Adjective

abortive

1. definite singular of abortiv
2. plural of abortiv

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?t?a?fli?/

Adjective

trifling (comparative more trifling, superlative most trifling)

1. Trivial, or of little importance.
   • 2005, Plato, Sophist. Translation by Lesley Brown. 234a.

     […] it doesn't take him long to make any of them, and he sells them for some trifling sum of money.

2. Idle or frivolous.
3. (African-American Vernacular) Of suspicious character, typically secretive or deceitful; shady.
   • 2001, Glenda Howard, Cita's World

     My hand was aching to slap that silly heifer. I told her to take her trifling ass down to Burger King and get herself a job flipping burgers […]

Synonyms

• trivial
• inconsequential
• petty
• See also Thesaurus:insignificant

Related terms

• trifle

Translations

Noun

trifling (plural triflings)

1. The act of one who trifles; frivolous behaviour.
   • 1845, George Croly, Samuel Warren, Marston, or the Memoirs of a Statesman

     He writes on the principle, of course, that in one's dotage we are privileged to return to the triflings of our infancy, and that Downing Street cannot be better employed in these days than as a chapel of ease to Eton.

Translations

Verb

trifling

1. present participle of trifle

Anagrams

• filtring, flirting