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abstain

 - 5 dictionary results

ab⋅stain

  [ab-steyn]
–verb (used without object)
1. to hold oneself back voluntarily, esp. from something regarded as improper or unhealthy (usually fol. by from): to abstain from eating meat.
2. to refrain from casting one's vote: a referendum in which two delegates abstained.
Use abstain in a Sentence
Origin:
1350–1400; ME abste(i)nen < MF abstenir ≪ L abstinēre, equiv. to abs- abs- + -tinēre, comb. form of tenēre to hold, keep

Synonyms:
1. forbear; desist, cease.

Antonyms:
1. indulge.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To abstain
ab·stain   (āb-stān', əb-)   
intr.v.   ab·stained, ab·stain·ing, ab·stains

  1. To refrain from something by one's own choice: abstain from traditional political rhetoric. See Synonyms at refrain1.

  2. To refrain from voting: Forty senators voted in favor of the bill, 45 voted against it, and 15 abstained.


[Middle English absteinen, to avoid, from Old French abstenir, from Latin abstinēre, to hold back : abs-, ab-, away; see ab-1 + tenēre, to hold; see ten- in Indo-European roots.]
ab·stain'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

abstain 
c.1380, "to withhold oneself," from O.Fr. abstenir, from L. abstinere "withhold," from ab(s)- "from, away from" + tenere "to hold" (see tenet). Specifically of liquor, attested from 1382. Of voting, 1885.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: ab·stain
Pronunciation: &b-'stAn, ab-
Function: intransitive verb
: to refrain from exercising federal jurisdiction over a case : cause an abstention
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: ab·stain
Pronunciation: &b-'stAn, ab-
Function: intransitive verb
: to refrain deliberately and often with an effort of self-denialfrom an action or practice (as consumption of a food or a drug or indulgence in sexual intercourse) —ab·stain·er noun
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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