The Definition of Ablative Absolute

ablative absolute
–noun Latin Grammar. a construction not dependent upon any other part of the sentence, consisting of a noun and a participle, noun and adjective, or two nouns, in which both members are in the ablative case, as Latin viā factā, “the road having been made.”


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[Origin: 1520–30]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source ab·la·tive absolute (āb'lə-tĭv) Pronunciation Key
n. In Latin grammar, an adverbial phrase syntactically independent from the rest of the sentence and containing a noun or pronoun plus an adjunct, usually a participle or adjective, with both elements in the ablative case.


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WordNet - Cite This Source ablative absolute

noun
a constituent in Latin grammar; a noun and its modifier can function as a sentence modifier

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.