abstain

abstain
abstain (v.) late 14c., "to withhold oneself," from O.Fr. abstenir (14c.), earlier astenir (13c.) "hold (oneself) back, refrain, abstain (from), practice abstinence," from L. abstinere "withhold, keep back, keep off," from ab(s)- "from, away from" (see AB- (Cf. ab-)) + tenere "to hold" (see TENET (Cf. tenet)). Specifically of liquor, attested from late 14c. Of voting, 1796. Related: Abstained; abstaining.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?
Synonyms:

Look at other dictionaries:

  • abstain — ab·stain /əb stān, ab / vi: to refrain from exercising federal jurisdiction over a case: cause an abstention Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. abstain …   Law dictionary

  • Abstain — Ab*stain , v. t. To hinder; to withhold. [1913 Webster] Whether he abstain men from marrying. Milton. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • abstain — [ab stān′, əbstān′] vi. [ME absteinen < OFr abstenir < L abstinere, to hold back < ab(s) , from + tenere, to hold: see TENANT] to hold oneself back; voluntarily do without; refrain (from) [to abstain from smoking] SYN. REFRAIN1 abstainer …   English World dictionary

  • Abstain — Ab*stain , v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Abstained}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Abstaining}.] [OE. absteynen, abstenen, OF. astenir, abstenir, F. abstenir, fr. L. abstinere, abstentum, v. t. & v. i., to keep from; ab, abs + tenere to hold. See {Tenable}.] To hold… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • abstain — *refrain, forbear Analogous words: *forgo, eschew, abnegate: *decline, refuse, spurn, reject: desist (see STOP) Antonyms: indulge Contrasted words: pamper (see INDULGE): *satiate …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • abstain — [v] hold back from doing abjure, abnegate, avoid, cease, constrain, curb, decline, deny oneself, do without, eschew, evade, fast, fence sit*, forbear, forgo, give the go by*, give up, go on the wagon*, keep from, pass, pass up, quit, refrain,… …   New thesaurus

  • abstain — ► VERB 1) restrain oneself from doing or indulging in something. 2) formally choose not to vote. DERIVATIVES abstainer noun. ORIGIN Latin abstinere hold from …   English terms dictionary

  • abstain — UK [əbˈsteɪn] / US verb [intransitive] Word forms abstain : present tense I/you/we/they abstain he/she/it abstains present participle abstaining past tense abstained past participle abstained 1) a) to deliberately avoid doing something that is… …   English dictionary

  • abstain — v. (D; intr.) to abstain from (to abstain from alcohol) * * * [əb steɪn] (D; intr.) to abstain from (to abstain from alcohol) …   Combinatory dictionary

  • abstain — [[t]æbste͟ɪn[/t]] abstains, abstaining, abstained 1) VERB If you abstain from something, usually something you want to do, you deliberately do not do it. [FORMAL] [V from n] Abstain from sex or use condoms... Do you drink alcohol, smoke, or… …   English dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”