as in to refuse
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Recent Examples of abstain
The 15-member council voted 10-0, with five European nations abstaining.
—
Matt Robison, Newsweek, 24 Feb. 2025
After abstaining from making a purchase in January, Arsenal have significant work to do once the summer market starts in June.
—James McNicholas, The Athletic, 19 Feb. 2025
After abstaining for a long period, former users lose their tolerance to opioids; doses that were previously fine can become deadly.
—Moises Velasquez-Manoff, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2025
Cutting off Canada would have subtler but no less extensive effects than abstaining from Mexican produce.
—Yasmin Tayag, The Atlantic, 8 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abstain
Matt Robison, Newsweek, 24 Feb. 2025
After abstaining from making a purchase in January, Arsenal have significant work to do once the summer market starts in June.
—James McNicholas, The Athletic, 19 Feb. 2025
After abstaining for a long period, former users lose their tolerance to opioids; doses that were previously fine can become deadly.
—Moises Velasquez-Manoff, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2025
Cutting off Canada would have subtler but no less extensive effects than abstaining from Mexican produce.
—Yasmin Tayag, The Atlantic, 8 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abstain
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abstain
Verb
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In hearings at the Constitutional Court, which is deliberating whether to formally remove Mr. Yoon from office, both Lieutenant General Lee and Lieutenant General Yeo refused to discuss details of their roles for fear that their testimony would be used against them during their own criminal trials.—
Choe Sang-Hun,
New York Times,
10 Mar. 2025
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In response, the woman not only refused to bake a cake this year but also skipped the party altogether.—
William Lambers,
Newsweek,
9 Mar. 2025
Verb
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More than 16,000 of our members sent messages to Congress urging them to vote no on Trump's budget proposal and asking them to reject the Christian nationalist ploy to pit vulnerable communities against each other for the benefit of the few.—
Tommy Tuberville,
Newsweek,
7 Mar. 2025
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Albritton has rejected the idea of passing an open carry bill this year.—
Romy Ellenbogen,
Miami Herald,
7 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Gaga then turned down the tempo and started making jazz and soundtrack fare, with only occasional and fairly minor pop detours.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
10 Mar. 2025
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According to reports, former Avalanche winger Mikko Rantanen turned down more money in Carolina to pave the way for a trade-and-sign deal with the Dallas Stars at the NHL’s trade deadline.—
Sean Keeler,
The Denver Post,
8 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Reach out to people, don’t hesitate to ask questions and don’t always focus on specializing—the world out there today is (often) seeking generalists.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes,
10 Mar. 2025
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Lilian hesitated and said there was something else that Dr. Fenton might want to know, which had nothing to do with the infection and was not the reason for the appointment.—
Yiyun Li,
The New Yorker,
9 Mar. 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 13 Mar. 2025.
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