asceticism

noun

as·​cet·​i·​cism ə-ˈse-tə-ˌsi-zəm 

1

: the practice of strict self-denial as a measure of personal and especially spiritual discipline : the condition, practice, or mode of life of an ascetic : rigorous abstention from self-indulgence

Sacrifice, renunciation, asceticism, fasting, returning again to God … : these are inclinations fueled as much by instinct as by religious idealism.

—Joyce Carol Oates

Crossing the Atlantic in a small sailboat is an exercise in asceticism, a test of what the human psyche can do without.

—Sarah Ballard

2

: austerity in appearance, manner, or attitude

His neatly trimmed white beard and runner's physique suggest the asceticism of a mathematics professor, while his questioning mind signals a mistrust of surface impressions.

—Bruce Schoenfeld

In contrast to the chaste asceticism of earlier modernist office towers, the AT&T Building incorporated traditional symbols of imperial power (Roman vaults and arches), prestige (a Chippendale-inspired silhouette), and old money (a huge golden statue in the lobby, which once stood on top of the old AT&T Building).

—Witold Rybczynski

Examples of asceticism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That state of affairs has diluted asceticism from the actual, if difficult, rejection of indulgence into a fetish for that abstinence. —Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 26 Aug. 2024

Answering this call is not about purist asceticism; it is affirmatively oriented toward building community. —Jishnu Guha-Majumdar, Vox, 8 Aug. 2024

Learning about the Buddha’s Middle Way, a way of life that recognizes and threads the extremes of asceticism and hedonism, provides a way of living life in balance. —Mitch Hendrickson, The Conversation, 29 July 2024

Simmons took that religious devotion to exercise, stripped away its grim asceticism and elitism, and imbued it with pure emotionalism and inclusivity. —Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, The Atlantic, 16 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1646, in the meaning defined at sense 1