1
as in temperateness
an avoidance of extremes in one's actions, beliefs, or habits
my father attributes his ripe old age to temperance in all things, especially eating and drinking
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in abstinence
voluntary restraint in the satisfaction of one's appetites
practices a blue-blooded temperance that his parvenu neighbors will never understand
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of temperance
Indiana is staunchly conservative, but its Republicans tend to foster a deliberate temperance.
—
Isabella Volmert, Fortune, 26 Oct. 2025
The temperance movement, which aimed to reduce alcohol use, gained steam in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
—Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 16 Sep. 2025
There were many episodes about temperance, women's suffrage and Jim Crow laws this season on the series, all historical elements that brought great change and chaos to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2025
Those interviewed for this article – whose backgrounds range from science to politics – have found that humanity, honesty, compassion, humility, and temperance are needed in these frank conversations.
—Stephen Humphries, Christian Science Monitor, 2 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for temperance
Isabella Volmert, Fortune, 26 Oct. 2025
The temperance movement, which aimed to reduce alcohol use, gained steam in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
—Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 16 Sep. 2025
There were many episodes about temperance, women's suffrage and Jim Crow laws this season on the series, all historical elements that brought great change and chaos to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 11 Aug. 2025
Those interviewed for this article – whose backgrounds range from science to politics – have found that humanity, honesty, compassion, humility, and temperance are needed in these frank conversations.
—Stephen Humphries, Christian Science Monitor, 2 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for temperance
Recent Examples of Synonyms for temperance
Noun
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But the answer doesn’t seem to be total abstinence.—
AJ Willingham,
AJC.com,
20 Mar. 2026
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Millions of Muslims around the world every year observe Ramadan, a period of prayer, reflection and abstinence that coincides with the ninth month of the Islamic calendar.—
Melina Khan,
USA Today,
17 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Aaron said that incorporating a method of moderation or verification—such as the voting system in Waze—would have required collecting user data that might someday fall under a subpoena.—
Oriana van Praag,
New Yorker,
28 Mar. 2026
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The decline followed Musk’s overhaul of moderation systems and the disbanding of internal safety groups.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
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When asked by Shane to submit to a field sobriety test, Curry declined and instead extended his hands, saying the officers should place him in handcuffs and take him to jail.—
Deborah Laverty,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Mar. 2026
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For a person struggling with substance abuse disorder, one strong craving can be the catalyst for a patient to completely abandon sobriety.—
CT Jones,
Rolling Stone,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
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As with any discipline, there is something democratic about its effects.—
Caleb Crain,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Mar. 2026
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Wilkens grew up in the 1970s and early ’80s in Kellyville, a no-stoplight town, where her father’s moodiness and brute discipline dominated the household.—
Pamela Colloff,
ProPublica,
24 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The city isn’t well-positioned to raise the money to address this fact in a sensible way, given limits on its taxing authority and current budgetary restraints.—
Kevin Cole,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Mar. 2026
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The prosecutor argued that Officer Noonan showed restraint that day, only shooting when Fitzsimmons performed the tap-rack and pointed the gun.—
Matt Schooley,
CBS News,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The pelvic floor supports the pelvic organs (the bladder, uterus and bowel), controls the body’s continence mechanisms and helps with core stability.—
Charlotte Harpur,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
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The pelvic floor muscles need to work in a coordinated pattern, relaxing to allow urine to flow and contracting to maintain continence, said Alexis E. Te, MD, a professor of urology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, told Verywell.—
Maggie O'Neill,
Verywell Health,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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At the beginning of her relationship with John, Carolyn’s central problem was that being part of the Kennedy family demanded some level of self-denial.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
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On Ash Wednesday, many Christians go to church for a service that emphasizes the start of a season of reflection, self-denial and repentance from sin.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Her vocation requires the skill of transformation and self-abnegation, as well as a receptiveness to language and emotion not her own.—
Jordan Kisner,
The Atlantic,
4 Apr. 2025
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The audience responds gratefully to this level of self-abnegation, and the frankly chilling sounds that come out of her.—
Helen Shaw,
The New Yorker,
25 Oct. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Temperance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/temperance. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.
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