celibate
Americannoun
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a person who abstains from sexual relations.
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a person who remains unmarried, especially for religious reasons.
adjective
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observing or pertaining to sexual abstention or a religious vow not to marry.
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not married.
noun
adjective
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unmarried, esp by vow
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abstaining from sexual intercourse
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of celibate
First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin caelib- (stem of caelebs ) “unmarried” + -ate 1
Explanation
A person who refrains from being sexually active is celibate. "They dated for three years in high school but committed to staying celibate until marriage — something they were grateful for after breaking up and marrying others when they got older. While celibate comes from a 17th-century Latin term for "unmarried," today it's used for all people who don't engage in sexual activity. Priests and nuns vow to remain celibate as part of their religious commitments, and many youth groups and religious organizations promote staying celibate until marriage. As a noun, a celibate refers to one who practices celibacy — like the priests and nuns we mentioned.
Vocabulary lists containing celibate
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Celibate by principle—they peopled their ranks with orphans and adoptees—they channelled their passions into religion, handicrafts, and music.
From The New Yorker • Feb. 4, 2019
I myself have written five novels The Celibate, Easter, The Enemy of the Good, Jubilate and now The Breath of Night, concerned in different ways and to differing degrees with issues of faith.
From The Guardian • Jul. 26, 2013
Celibate animal species are rare for a reason, Rabeling says.
From Science Magazine • Jul. 18, 2011
Where Wit and Judgment live as Celibate Nor Fancy sleeps with Reason as her mate The dualistic Dryden and his muse Shake hands, but lack the fiery heat to fuse.
From Time Magazine Archive
Three years ago he had gone to Orgny Fastness and he wore now the gold chain of a Celibate of the Foretellers.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
