abstainer

[ ab-stey-ner ]
See synonyms for abstainer on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a person who abstains from something regarded as improper or unhealthy, especially the drinking of alcoholic beverages.

  2. a person who abstains from anything.

Origin of abstainer

1
First recorded in 1525–35; abstain + -er1

Other words from abstainer

  • non·ab·stain·er, noun

Words Nearby abstainer

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use abstainer in a sentence

  • Coffee and tea drinkers had a 28 percent lower risk of dementia and a 32 percent lower risk of stroke compared with abstainers.

  • A total abstainer, I had, I am thankful to say, strength enough to resist the temptation thus adroitly thrust upon me.

    In the Wrong Paradise | Andrew Lang
  • The preacher of the Spital sermon this year is to be a life-long abstainer, the Bishop of Carlisle.

    The Quiver 3/1900 | Anonymous
  • A total abstainer is one who abstains from everything but abstention, and especially from inactivity in the affairs of others.

    The Devil's Dictionary | Ambrose Bierce
  • They absolve the sinner who can plead, "I was in love," more easily than the self-righteous abstainer.

    What Will People Say? | Rupert Hughes
  • He has taken ale or porter at times, "under doctor's counsel," but in general he has been an "abstainer."

    The Crow's Nest | Clarence Day, Jr.