Antiabortion

Part of speech: adjective, noun

Definitions

1. Opposing or seeking to prevent the termination of pregnancy through medical or surgical means
2. Opposing the practice of ending pregnancies through any medical or surgical intervention
3. Advocating against the procedures that lead to pregnancy termination, including both medical and surgical methods

Etymology: "Antiabortion" is a plain compound: the prefix "anti-", from Ancient Greek "anti" meaning "against" or "opposite", joined to "abortion". The prefix has been productive in English for centuries, so the word needed no special coinage; it simply describes opposition to the ending of pregnancies. "Abortion" itself comes from Latin "abortio", a word for miscarriage or premature birth, built from "aboriri" ("to miscarry"). The term was used for any early loss of a pregnancy, and only later narrowed to refer to deliberate ending of a pregnancy. The compound is an English formation, so its meaning follows directly from its parts: "anti-" sets the stance and "abortion" sets the object of that stance. Because it works as both an adjective and a noun, it can describe a policy, a movement, or a person who holds the view.