The referents of our concepts are concrete; each is a single,
individual object.
A concept is abstract because it:
|
1. | refers to a group of objects, not just to a single thing; |
| 2. |
groups together things that differ from one another. Things
are grouped together, not because they are identical,
but because they are similar in some respect. |
Lassie (as the name of a specific dog) refers to a concrete
object, whereas the concept DOG is abstract because it refers to a
group of objects that are similar in certain respects.
Example:
Lassie (as the name of a specific dog) refers to a concrete
object, while the concept DOG is abstract because it refers to a
group of objects that are similar in certain respects.
Order of Increasing Abstractness