as in ascetic
given to or marked by restraint in the satisfaction of one's appetites
abstentious by nature, she eats only to satisfy actual hunger—never just for the sake of eating
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abstentious
Adjective
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But Pascal, for all the twinkle in his eye, often plays relatively sexless characters — from the fatherly energy of The Last of Us to the ascetic qualities of The Mandalorian.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
EW.com,
9 June 2025 -
Meanwhile, narratives of Ayyappan usually describe him as a god raised as a human prince who becomes a warrior and finally an ascetic.—
Deepa Das Acevedo,
Foreign Affairs,
4 Apr. 2019
Adjective
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Some have evolved exceedingly specific diets—diets that would put even the most abstemious human to shame.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes,
12 Mar. 2025
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The solution offered up by some: the sort of abstemious, low-fat, often vegetarian, diets that had been prescribed as lust-control regimens only decades earlier.—
Rachel Hope Cleves / Made by History,
TIME,
14 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The cross-continent trek for Rye Riptides, which students and now-retired Rye Junior High School science teacher Sheila Adams stuffed with photos of the Rye students, a facemask with their signatures on it, fall leaves, acorns and state quarters, was conducted with the help of Educational Passages.—
Ian Lenahan,
USA TODAY,
17 Feb. 2022
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The totem pole was carved by members of the Lummi Nation and is being transported from their home in Washington state to Washington, D.C., as part of a 15-day, cross-continent journey to advocate for the protection of sacred places and the expansion of tribal sovereignty rights.—
Zak Podmore,
The Salt Lake Tribune,
18 July 2021
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Cite this Entry
“Abstentious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abstentious. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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