abstaining

verb

present participle of abstain
as in refusing

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for abstaining
  1. refusing
  2. rejecting
  3. turning down
  4. hesitating
  5. delaying
  6. declining
Verb
  • For the first time since at least 1974, new homes are selling for less than existing ones, and the culprit is a mix of builders getting generous and sellers refusing to budge.
    — Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 15 July 2026
  • Lestat uses his songs to analyze his past while refusing to deal with the ongoing reality of his mother’s emotional manipulation and physical abuse.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 15 July 2026
Definition of refusing
Verb
  • Additional programmable keys can be assigned to common functions such as push-to-talk, sending prompts, or accepting and rejecting code changes.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 15 July 2026
  • One of these, according to Valdés Ugalde, has been rejecting extradition requests for politicians allegedly linked to drug trafficking on the grounds of national sovereignty.
    — Mauricio Torres, CNN Money, 12 July 2026
Definition of rejecting
Verb
  • Rock Hill Mayor John Gettys said the city has spent four years turning down redevelopment offers for Palmetto Research Park in an effort to hold the property for higher-wage employers.
    — John Marks, Charlotte Observer, 2 July 2026
  • Value your time by turning down unpaid tasks.
    — Tarot.com, Chicago Tribune, 17 June 2026
Definition of turning down
Verb
  • The book does often feel like a recording of a mental jam session, but there is also a sense of being guided by a kind of hesitating yet urgent voice that needs to get things figured out.
    — Craig Morgan Teicher, Literary Hub, 1 June 2026
  • 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
Definition of hesitating
Verb
  • Crabtree said in his order that the court shared the government’s concerns about delaying the proceedings.
    — Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 17 July 2026
  • Still, Goldman acknowledged that delaying an IVF procedure isn’t exactly an easy thing to do.
    — Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 17 July 2026
Definition of delaying
Verb
  • MedStar Washington Hospital Center cites financial pressure and declining birth rates.
    — Kendall Staton, Washington Post, 17 July 2026
  • Pascal launched in June and remains in private beta, with the company declining to disclose current trading volumes.
    — Camila Grigera Naón, Fortune, 16 July 2026
Definition of declining
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

abstain (from)
abstaining
abstaining (from)
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Cite this Entry

“Abstaining.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abstaining. Accessed 18 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of abstaining for Spanish Speakers

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