The meaning of ABSTINENCE is the practice of abstaining from something : the practice of not doing or having something that is wanted or enjoyable. How to use abstinence in a sentence.

Abstinence is the practice of self-enforced restraint from indulging in bodily activities that are widely experienced as giving pleasure. Most frequently, the term refers to sexual abstinence, but it can also …

ABSTINENCE definition: 1. the fact of not doing something, usually something that is considered harmful such as drinking…. Learn more.

He started drinking again after a long period of total/complete abstinence from alcohol. He stopped drinking and has remained totally abstinent.

Definition of abstinence noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

Abstinence is the practice of abstaining from something such as alcoholic drink or sex, often for health or religious reasons. ...six months of abstinence.

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).

There are six meanings listed in OED's entry for the noun abstinence, two of which are labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

Dec 31, 2025 · From Middle English abstinence, from Old French abstinence, from Latin abstinentia, from abstinēns, present participle of abstineō (“I withhold”). Equivalent to abstain +‎ -ence.

abstinence meaning, definition, what is abstinence: the practice of not having something you...: Learn more.