abstract thought
1
7.4
- noun
- /ˈæbstrækt θɔt/
:
pensamiento abstracto
- Thought processes change from concrete to abstract thought, and the child begins to think independently.
- capacity for abstract thought
And you might say, what could be more foreign to thought, the abstract thought, then pleasure.
- And you might say, what could be more foreign to thought, the abstract thought, then pleasure.
- We have abstract thought and we have, you know, the individuality that has to end up being the the basis for abstract thought.
Examples
-
People with the capacity for abstract thought use it as a way of probing into an issue from a different angle.
Blog text (32) -
Creative drama becomes a partner in the development of abstract thought.
Academic text (1993) -
There was plenty of gray matter left for abstract thought.
Fiction book (2000) -
By grades 3 through 5, children are beginning to master skills and develop abstract thought processes.
Academic text (2012) -
The ability to engage in abstract thought is inseparable from language.
Blog text (33) -
It cannot be denied that there is a strong connection between communication and abstract thought.
Academic text (1997) -
Piaget maintained that youngsters of middle school age are capable of engaging in abstract thought.
Academic text (1999) -
But the mental effort reassured her, and she was strengthened by Helen's belief that she was still capable of abstract thought.
Fiction book (1997) -
And although human minds can now specialize in abstract thought or free-roaming imagination, we still respond most vividly and multimodally to immediate experience.
Academic text (2011) -
His ability to engage in abstract thought allows him to solve complex problems creatively.
Antonyms
How Abstract
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'the mental ability to consider concepts and ideas that are not physically present' is directly and compositionally derived from 'abstract' (conceptual, not concrete) modifying 'thought' (idea or thinking). This simple adjective + noun pattern is cross-linguistically common and should be immediately inferable by a B1 learner who knows both constituent words.
Etymology
The noun abstract thought comes from the idea that abstract means 'not physical' and thought means a picture or idea in your mind. Imagine drawing an idea in the air instead of on paper; this image shows 'thinking about things that are not physically present', so abstract thought means the mental ability to work with ideas rather than real objects.