abstinence
/ˈæb.stɪ.nəns/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 3.18 in modern English
14
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
3
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The act or practice of abstaining, refraining from indulging a desire or appetite.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The act or practice of abstaining, refraining from indulging a desire or appetite.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The act or practice of abstaining, refraining from indulging a desire or appetite.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The act or practice of abstaining, refraining from indulging a desire or appetite.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The practice of self-denial; self-restraint; forebearance from anything.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "Near-synonyms: abstentiousness, abstemiousness"
- "Penance, Faſts, and Abſtinence, / To puniſh Bodies for the Souls offence."
- "The abstinence from a present pleasure that offers itself is a pain, nay, oftentimes, a very great one."
- "These five short films by San Francisco artist James Broughton, reveal to the viewer the artistic changes undergone by the artist during his 15-year abstinence from filmmaking."
- "For quotations using this term, see Citations:abstinence."
- "Abstinence is the only 100% guaranteed contraception."
Etymology
From Middle English abstinence, from Old French abstinence, from Latin abstinentia, from abstinēns, present participle of abstineō (“to withhold”). Equivalent to abstain + -ence.