Abolition

/əˌbɒlɪˈʃən/

nounIntermediate📊CommonConcept
1 meaning1 question

Definitions

1

The act of formally ending a practice, institution, or system.

/əˌbɒlɪˈʃən/

nounneutralIntermediate
Concept

The act of formally ending something

The abolition of slavery was a great victory for human rights.

💡 Simply: Getting rid of something completely and officially.

More Examples

2

The government announced the abolition of all remaining tariffs.

How It's Used

Political

"The abolition of slavery was a major turning point in history."

Legal

"The abolition of the death penalty was met with mixed reactions."

From Latin *abolire* ('to abolish, to put an end to'), from *ab* ('away') + *olēre* ('to be desired').

In the 19th century, the word 'abolition' was widely used in the context of the movement to end slavery.

Memory tip

Abolish + ion = Ending by action

Word Origin

LanguageLatin
Original meaning

"to put an end to"

abolition movementabolition of slaveryabolition of the monarchy

Common misspellings

abolitionistabolishment

Usage

5%Spoken
95%Written