abstention

[ ab-sten-shuhn ]
See synonyms for: abstentionabstentious on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. an act or instance of abstaining.

  2. withholding of a vote.

Origin of abstention

1
1515–25; <Late Latin abstentiōn- (stem of abstentiō), equivalent to Latin abstent(us), past participle of abstinēre to abstain + -iōn--ion

Other words from abstention

  • ab·sten·tious, adjective
  • non·ab·sten·tion, noun
  • un·ab·sten·tious, adjective

Words that may be confused with abstention

Words Nearby abstention

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

How to use abstention in a sentence

  • A second diplomat told the Daily Beast that a Chinese abstention may be "inevitable."

    Punishing the Mullahs | Michael Adler | February 10, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • But M. Nicklauss, with his great experience of the world, deemed this almost general abstention of the fair sex unnatural.

    The Nabob | Alphonse Daudet
  • He has not been there since, and the following pages will perhaps explain the reason of his abstention.

  • The abstention of a single sense from the coupling is enough to enfeeble the pleasure very greatly.

  • 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
  • If he were not going to build on the ground so carefully prepared, to what end this wariness and this abstention?

    The Long Night | Stanley Weyman

British Dictionary definitions for abstention

abstention

/ (əbˈstɛnʃən) /


noun
  1. a voluntary decision not to act; the act of refraining or abstaining

  2. the act of withholding one's vote

Origin of abstention

1
C16: from Late Latin abstentiōn-, from Latin abstinēre. See abstain

Derived forms of abstention

  • abstentious, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012