LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · masculinefourth declension

abortus

abortus m (genitive abortūs)
Classical[aˈbɔr.tʊs]Ecclesiastical[aˈbɔr.tus]

Meaning

  1. masculinepremature delivery, miscarriage, abortion
    […]sed si fieri id non potest quin sentiant, dicam abortum esse.[…] but if that can not be managed, and they do find it out, I will say that it was a miscarriage.165 B.C.E., Terence, Hecyra http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0134.phi005.perseus-lat1:3.3, Act 3 Scene 3
    […]ob conscientiae dignitatis amorem Ecclesia omnibus viribus Statum cogentem reicit, qui fovet atocium, sterilitatis inductionem, immo vel abortum.[…] for the sake of this dignity of conscience, the Church strongly rejects the forced State intervention in favour of contraception, sterilization and even abortion.2016, Pope Francis, Amoris laetitia, Vatican:
  2. figurativelymasculinean unfinished piece

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativeabortusabortūs
genitiveabortūsabortuum
dativeabortuīabortibus
accusativeabortumabortūs
ablativeabortūabortibus
vocativeabortusabortūs

ăbortus, ūs, m. (abortum, i, n., Dig. 29, 2, 30; cf. Paul. ex Fest. p. 29 Müll.) [aborior],
I. an abortion, miscarriage.
I. Lit.: dicam abortum esse, Ter. Hec. 3, 3, 38: Tertullae nollem abortum, had not miscarried, Cic. Att. 14, 20, 2: abortum facere, to suffer abortion, miscarry, Plin. Ep. 8, 10, 1; but also, to produce or cause abortion, Plin. 14, 18, 22, § 118; 21, 18, 69, § 116 al.—
B. Meton., of plants, Plin. 12, 2, 6, § 13.—*
II. Trop., of writings, an unfinished piece, Plin. praef. § 28.

Origins

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₂ep
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₂epó
  3. Proto-Italic*ap
  4. Latinabortus

Latin ab- Proto-Indo-European *h₃er-der. Proto-Italic *oriōr Latin orior Latin aborior Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Italic *-tus Latin -tus Latin abortus From aborior + -tus (forming action nouns).

Descendants
  • Englishabort
  • Portugueseabortfrom English abort
  • Englishabortus
  • GermanAbort
  • Italianaborto
  • Portugueseaborto
  • Spanishaborto
  • Asturianalbuertu
  • Crimean Tatarabort
  • Danishabort

Quick answers

What does abortus mean in Latin?
abortus, a noun, means “premature delivery, miscarriage, abortion; an unfinished piece”.
What is the genitive of abortus?
The genitive singular is abortūs. abortus is masculine, fourth declension.
How do you pronounce abortus?
In classical Latin, [aˈbɔr.tʊs]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [aˈbɔr.tus].
Where does abortus come from?
Proto-Indo-European *h₂ep → Proto-Indo-European *h₂epó → Proto-Italic *ap → Latin abortus.