What is tender abdomen?

Hurts: It means it hurts to touch.

Abdominal tenderness: A tender abdomen means that ones belly is sore. It might hurt when you lightly or deeply touch it, when you're exercising or simply then something comes in contact with it...Such as a belt.

Tenderness: Abdominal tenderness is generally a sign of inflammation or other acute processes in one or more organs, located in the same area as the tenderness. Twisted or blocked organs, such as your fallopian tubes or colon, can also cause tenderness

What MD elicits: When your physician presses on the abdomen, if patient complains pain at that spot then it is called tender, it is physical sign the doctor elicits, if patient comes with a complaint of pain at that location then it is symptom.