Abstract

Abstraction is the process of leaving out certain details of an idea or a concept to make it more general. The word abstract has the following connections:

Abstract art does not try to represent the physical world as it is.
Abstract ideas such as "democracy" are concepts. Unlike houses and books (which are objects) they cannot be touched. Other examples of abstract ideas are speed, rarity and courage.
In logic, if something is abstract, it is general.
Abstract algebra compares different kinds of algebra.
An abstract in writing is a short summary of a paper or essay that tells the the main points. Such summaries or abstracts are common in articles published in scientific journals.