as in to refuse
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Recent Examples of abstain
Those fasting must abstain from consuming meat.
—
Mariyam Muhammad, Cincinnati Enquirer, 1 Apr. 2026
Hegseth promised to abstain if he was confirmed.
—Steve Chapman, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2026
Organizers advised people to abstain from engaging with counter protesters and stick together as the event began to unfold.
—Alex Gladden, Oklahoman, 28 Mar. 2026
At the program, which costs around $1,000 a day, clients must abstain from smartphones, gaming, social media, and other technologies—often for months, and undergo intensive therapy sessions.
—Kristin Stoller, Fortune, 25 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for abstain
Mariyam Muhammad, Cincinnati Enquirer, 1 Apr. 2026
Hegseth promised to abstain if he was confirmed.
—Steve Chapman, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2026
Organizers advised people to abstain from engaging with counter protesters and stick together as the event began to unfold.
—Alex Gladden, Oklahoman, 28 Mar. 2026
At the program, which costs around $1,000 a day, clients must abstain from smartphones, gaming, social media, and other technologies—often for months, and undergo intensive therapy sessions.
—Kristin Stoller, Fortune, 25 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for abstain
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abstain
Verb
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Some people in the crowd who refused to leave and blocked traffic engaged in large physically violent fights, causing multiple injuries, the official said.—
Mark Morales,
CNN Money,
10 June 2026
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Rajoub refused the entreaty, much to the frustration and embarrassment of Infantino.—
Scott M. Reid,
Oc Register,
10 June 2026
Verb
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At the same time, the resolution calls for humane immigration policies that uphold justice and mercy, strongly rejecting nativism, discrimination and racial or ethnic hostility.—
Marc Ramirez,
USA Today,
10 June 2026
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As of last month, according to Yahoo Sports, more than $125 million worth of NIL compensation that had been promised to athletes had been rejected by the clearinghouse or was still under review.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
10 June 2026
Verb
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In February, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 124 in Kansas City, together with the National Electrical Contractors Association, expressed shock when residents of the lofts turned down the union’s offer to fix the sign for free, with one stipulation.—
Eric Adler,
Kansas City Star,
4 June 2026
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In the 17 years since, she’s turned down a deal from one of modern hip-hop’s waymakers and landed 14 tracks on the Hot 100.—
Mankaprr Conteh,
Pitchfork,
4 June 2026
Verb
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But at the last second, Pages pulled up to let Tucker make the catch, and Tucker hesitated before flailing after it.—
Maddie Lee,
Los Angeles Times,
30 May 2026
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While their rivals started spending significant sums of money as soon as the 2024-25 season finished, Spurs wasted a couple of weeks hesitating about the long-term future of then head coach Ange Postecoglou before replacing him with Thomas Frank.—
David Ornstein,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
Verb
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Assad lied and temporized, the official said.—
Robert F. Worth,
The Atlantic,
6 Feb. 2026
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Accompanying these principles must be a rejection of the impulse to temporize about the dangers that confront us and a rejection of the bizarre deprecation of our nation and civilization.—
Peter J. Travers,
National Review,
29 Mar. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Abstain.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abstain. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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