See Also: Abstinence(medicine)
Abstinence(health)
abstinence(dictionary)
abstinence(dictionary)
abstinence symptoms(medicine)
abstinence syndrome(medicine)
sexual abstinence(medicine)
neonatal abstinence syndrome(medicine)

abstinence (iou)



abstinence noun. ME.
[Old French from Latin abstinentia, formed as ABSTINENT: see -ENCE.]
Forbearance of any indulgence of appetite; sexual continence (the oldest sense); fasting; abstention from alcohol. ME.
total abstinence: see TOTAL adjective.
gen. The action or practice of abstaining from (or of) anything. LME.
abstinence of war a truce.
Comb.: abstinence syndrome Medicine the physical symptoms that appear when a person abruptly stops taking a drug to which he or she is addicted.
abstinency noun the practice of abstaining from pleasure, food, etc.; a fast: L16.