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abortionist

American  
[uh-bawr-shuh-nist] / əˈbɔr ʃə nɪst /

noun

Usually Disparaging.
  1. a person who performs or induces abortions, especially illegally.

  2. a person who favors or advocates abortion as a right or choice that all women should have.


abortionist British  
/ əˈbɔːʃənɪst /

noun

  1. a person who performs abortions, esp illegally

  2. a person who is in favour of abortion on demand

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of abortionist

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75; abortion + -ist

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Her options were to induce an abortion herself or find a doctor or backstreet abortionist who would do it at a price.

From BBC • Dec. 12, 2025

Andrew Jackson Davis' 1869 novel "Tale of a Physician," for example, tells the story of an evil female physician abortionist named Madame La Stelle, who gives her "entire attention to obstetrical cases and infanticides."

From Salon • Jul. 9, 2022

Stepping just outside its margins into the viewer’s space, a grubby pink stool where the abortionist sat is placed next to the patient’s wire seat.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 3, 2022

The divorced, disgraced, and debarred physician was ready to come out of the shadows: He was an illegal abortionist and had been for more than 35 years and 25,000 procedures.

From Slate • Jun. 15, 2022

The doctor either treats the patient successfully or sends her to hospital on his own personal note, and in neither case does the identity of the abortionist come to light.

From Report of the Committee of Inquiry into the Various Aspects of the Problem of Abortion in New Zealand by McMillan, D. G. (David Gervan)