abduction Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun the criminal act of capturing and carrying away by force a family member; if a man's wife is abducted it is a crime against the family relationship and against the wife
  2. noun (physiology) moving of a body part away from the central axis of the body

WordNet

Ab*duc"tion noun
Etymology
L. abductio: cf. F. abduction.
Definitions
  1. The act of abducing or abducting; a drawing apart; a carrying away. Roget.
  2. (Physiol.) The movement which separates a limb or other part from the axis, or middle line, of the body.
  3. (Law) The wrongful, and usually the forcible, carrying off of a human being; as, the abduction of a child, the abduction of an heiress.
  4. (Logic) A syllogism or form of argument in which the major is evident, but the minor is only probable.

Webster 1913