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1. : the practice of abstaining from something : the practice of not doing or having something that is wanted or enjoyable. … ate with a haste and an apparent relish, that seemed to betoken long abstinence from food. Walter Scott. 2. a. : habitual abstaining from intoxicating beverages. b. : abstention from sexual intercourse. abstinent.
completely avoiding something such as alcohol or sex: sexually abstinent. He has now been abstinent from alcohol for four years. Fewer examples. I choose to be abstinent and will wait to have sex until after I am married. He is totally abstinent at conferences because he wants to stay focused.
Abstinent definition: practicing abstinence; refraining from any indulgence of a particular appetite, impulse, or desire, as from alcohol, sexual activity, social media, etc.. See examples of ABSTINENT used in a sentence.
completely avoiding something such as alcohol or sex: sexually abstinent. He has now been abstinent from alcohol for four years. Fewer examples. I choose to be abstinent and will wait to have sex until after I am married. He is totally abstinent at conferences because he wants to stay focused.
Someone who's abstinent is moderate and restrained, especially when it comes to consuming food and drink. A person who quits drinking alcohol completely is abstinent.
Abstinence implies the willful avoidance of pleasures, especially of food and drink, thought to be harmful or self-indulgent: "I vainly reminded him of his protracted abstinence from food" (Emily Brontë).
Definition of abstinent adjective in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.
