as in to refuse
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Recent Examples of abstain
People with existing liver disease should completely abstain from alcohol.
—
Lindsay Curtis, Health, 8 Apr. 2025
Canada has already retaliated with its own tariffs, while Mexico has so far abstained from doing so.
—William Gavin, Quartz, 31 Mar. 2025
Young marijuana users are six times more likely to have a heart attack than those who abstain from the drug, according to a new study that analyzed data from more than 4.6 million people.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, People.com, 18 Mar. 2025
State ethics rules require that lawmakers abstain from voting only if the legislation would disproportionately affect their business, compared to others in the industry.
—Ginny Monk, Hartford Courant, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abstain
Lindsay Curtis, Health, 8 Apr. 2025
Canada has already retaliated with its own tariffs, while Mexico has so far abstained from doing so.
—William Gavin, Quartz, 31 Mar. 2025
Young marijuana users are six times more likely to have a heart attack than those who abstain from the drug, according to a new study that analyzed data from more than 4.6 million people.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, People.com, 18 Mar. 2025
State ethics rules require that lawmakers abstain from voting only if the legislation would disproportionately affect their business, compared to others in the industry.
—Ginny Monk, Hartford Courant, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abstain
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abstain
Verb
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Wyatt, the senior ace on his way to Michigan, and Walker, the gritty junior second baseman who refused to give up on his dream of starting, paused when trying to wrap their heads around the scene unfolding around them.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
31 May 2025
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Indian officials had previously refused to confirm even a single aircraft loss.—
Billy Stockwell,
CNN Money,
31 May 2025
Verb
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These individuals reject the Redpill notion of alpha-male masculinity and the accompanying focus on self-improvement.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
30 May 2025
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In December, the state Legislature initially rejected the plan because of funding ambiguities.—
Theo Burman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 May 2025
Verb
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No superstar free agent is turning down Los Angeles or Miami or Boston to come to the Circle City.—
Zak Keefer,
New York Times,
21 May 2025
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Hagen then turns the camera to a bystander that had supposedly turned down an opportunity to put one on.—
Angel Diaz,
Billboard,
19 May 2025
Verb
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Marsch didn’t hesitate to call on the 21-year-old to replace Davies in March.—
Joshua Kloke,
New York Times,
21 May 2025
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When asked to reflect on a moment that stands out from his 5-year tenure (2000-2005), AJ didn’t hesitate.—
Amber Corrine,
VIBE.com,
20 May 2025
Verb
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Romney's Cass took Obama to task for opposing development of the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge and for temporizing on the Keystone pipeline, while Obama's Aldy accused Romney of being insensitive to the environment and to the needs and desires of future generations.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
9 Oct. 2012
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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 4 Jun. 2025.
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