abstention

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: ab=sten=tion

CIDE DICTIONARY

abstention, a. [F. See Abstain.].

 The act of abstaining; a holding aloof.  Jer. Taylor.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

abstention, n. the act or an instance of abstaining, esp. from voting.

Etymology

F abstention or LL abstentio -onis (as ABSTAIN)

THESAURUS

abstention

Encratism, Friday, Lenten fare, Pythagoreanism, Pythagorism, Rechabitism, Shakerism, Spartan fare, Stoicism, abstainment, abstemiousness, abstinence, anythingarianism, asceticism, avoidance, banyan day, celibacy, chastity, continence, cop-out, desuetude, disuse, eschewal, evasion, fast, fence-sitting, fish day, fruitarianism, gymnosophy, impartiality, independence, mugwumpery, mugwumpism, nephalism, neutralism, neutrality, nonalignment, noncommitment, nonemployment, noninvolvement, nonpartisanism, nonprevalence, nonuse, nothingarianism, obsolescence, obsoleteness, obsoletion, obsoletism, pensioning off, plain living, refraining, refrainment, retirement, sexual abstinence, simple diet, spare diet, strict neutrality, superannuation, teetotalism, the pledge, total abstinence, unprevalence, vegetarianism

ROGET THESAURUS

abstention

Avoidance

N avoidance, abstention, abstinence, for bearance, refraining, inaction, neutrality, avoidance, evasion, elusion, seclusion, avolation, flight, escape, retreat, recoil, departure, rejection, shirker, truant, fugitive, refugee, runaway, runagate, maroon, unsought, unattempted, avoiding, neutral, shy of, elusive, evasive, fugitive, runaway, shy, wild, Adj, lest, in order to avoid, Int, forbear!, keep off, hands off!, sauve qui peut!, every man for himself!, devil take the hindmost!, things unattempted yet in prose or rhyme.