An abstract is a precise and concise overview of a larger piece of writing and is placed at the beginning of the article, essay or thesis it describes. It is often referred to as "summary" and even more often, it is misused in a variety of contexts to signify types of introductory writing which cannot, in fact, function as abstracts.

Abstracts give the essential elements of the finished project rather than going into detail, and describes rather than evaluates.