“Abstinence” or “Abstinents”—Which to use?

“Abstinence” or “Abstinents”

Overview

abstinence / abstinents are similar-sounding terms with different meanings (referred to as homophones). To better understand the differences, see below for definitions, pronunciation guides, and example sentences using each term. 👇

Definitions

abstinence: (noun) the trait of abstaining (especially from alcohol). (noun) act or practice of refraining from indulging an appetite.

abstinents: NA

Pronunciation

abstinence: AE·b·s·t·ah·n·ah·n·s

abstinents: NA

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Examples in Context

Examples of “abstinence”

They used abstinence as their main form of…
…to teach the virtue of abstinence."
Total Abstinence and its proper Place 1863
…left unhappy at his enforced abstinence.
Moir specialized in sexual abstinence and taught his beliefs to
…worship of one god and abstinence from alcohol.
…substance abuse (time period of abstinence is variable)
Sexual abstinence
…teach birth-control methods only by abstinence from sex.
…International described change as, "attaining abstinence from homosexual behaviors, lessening of…

Examples of “abstinents”

(Examples are Wikipedia snippets under the CC ShareAlike 3.0 license. Definitions drawn from WordNet.)

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