self-renunciation
noun
self-re·nun·ci·a·tion
ˌself-ri-ˌnən(t)-sē-ˈā-shən 
plural self-renunciations
: the renouncing of one's own wishes, desires, or ambitions
But what is surely foreign to most of us is the life of prayer, self-renunciation, and single-minded spiritual pursuit.—
Joel J. Miller
Joel J. MillerOur tenderness and self-renunciation seem strong when our egoism has had its day …—George Eliot
George EliotExamples of self-renunciation in a Sentence
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In a country like India, subjugated early in the history of capitalist imperialism, and then bullied after independence by the West, a degree of self-renunciation and collective sacrifice was widely understood to be requisite to economic and political self-strengthening.
—Wyatt Williams, Harpers Magazine, 2 June 2026
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Wyatt Williams, Harpers Magazine, 2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Self-renunciation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/self-renunciation. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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