idea, notion, conception, construct, abstraction, perception, impression, theory, principle, thought, understanding, mental image, mental model
abstraction layer - generalization - conceptualization - notion - idea - concept - abstraction level - thought - mental model - representation - model - schema - simplification - essence - quintessence
Abstraction is the process of focusing on the essential characteristics of something while ignoring or omitting irrelevant details. In philosophy, logic, mathematics, computer science, and art, abstraction allows people to create general concepts, models, or representations that apply to many specific cases. By stripping away concrete specifics, abstraction helps to simplify complex systems, reveal underlying structures, and enable clearer reasoning. It can refer both to the mental act of forming an abstract idea and to the result of that act, such as an abstract concept, model, or artwork that does not directly imitate physical reality.