abstract thought

Meaning

1. 1noununcountable

   Thinking about ideas, qualities, or possibilities that are not tied to particular objects or immediate experience.

   Grammar: No plural; often contrasted with concrete thought and commonly used in psychology, education, and philosophy.

   Patterns

   • develop abstract thought
   • engage in abstract thought
   • use abstract thought
   • abstract thought about something

   Children gradually develop abstract thought as they learn to reason about unseen ideas.

   Mathematics requires abstract thought about numbers and relationships.

   The essay moves from concrete examples to abstract thought about fairness.

Common combinations

develop abstract thought

Piaget argued that children develop abstract thought in stages.

use abstract thought

We use abstract thought when we imagine justice, time, or possibility.

abstract thought and language

The course links abstract thought and language development.

from concrete to abstract thought

Good teachers move students from concrete to abstract thought carefully.

Synonyms and how they differ

abstract reasoning

Very close, but it stresses logical problem solving with ideas and symbols, while abstract thought is the broader mental activity.

conceptual thinking

Focuses on forming and comparing concepts; it overlaps with abstract thought but is common in design and business contexts.

theoretical reasoning

Uses theories and general principles to reach conclusions, whereas abstract thought may simply involve considering nonphysical ideas.

Opposites

Word family

abstract adjective

Relating to ideas rather than physical things.

abstraction noun

The process or result of forming a general idea from particular cases.

abstractly adverb

In an abstract way, without reference to concrete objects.

Commonly confused: abstract thought or abstract noun?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “abstract thought”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words