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The notion of abstraction lies at the heart of Whitehead’s thought. From logical- mathematical formalisms to speculative schemas, the status of physical entities and aesthetic forms, the question of abstractions pervades the entirety of Whitehead’s work. Yet the question of abstractions has remained relatively unexamined. It has to be said that Whitehead unfailingly gave them a special and, to say the least, unusual status. They are, in his thinking, at the heart of tangible experience; they define beings in their very constitution; they offer a gateway onto the possible worlds that accompany all existence. The aim of this article is to propose an interpretation of Whitehead’s thought based on the singular status he accords to abstractions.