What does "abstemious" mean?
Refraining from freely consuming food or strong drink; sparing in diet; abstinent, temperate.
Abstemious
/æbˈstiː.mɪ.əs/ adj
adj ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Refraining from freely consuming food or strong drink; sparing in diet; abstinent, temperate.
- Grammar: abstemious is listed as adj.
- Nearest alternatives: abstentious, abstentious, abstinent, abstinent.
- Useful contrasts: drunk, hedonistic, nonabstemious.
- Usage evidence: The professor was famous for his abstemious meals.
How to use "abstemious"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "abstemious" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "abstemious" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "abstemious" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "abstemious" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "abstemious" is acting as adj in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "abstentious" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "abstemious", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Adjective
- 1 Refraining from freely consuming food or strong drink; sparing in diet; abstinent, temperate.
"It cannot be denied it [the chameleon] is (if not the moſt of any) a very abſtemious animall, and ſuch as by reaſon of its frigidity, paucity of bloud, and latitancy in the winter (about which time the obſervations are often made) will long ſubſist without a viſible ſuſtentation."
- 2 Sparing in the indulgence of the appetite or passions.
"The Ms had an abstemious sex life; in fourteen years of marriage, they had had sex exactly six times. Mrs. M desired sex and more children, but her husband refused."
- 3 Sparingly used; used with temperance or moderation.
"If the predisposition to the disease has arisen from a plethoric state of the system, or from a turgescence in the vessels of the head, this is to be obviated by bleeding, both generally and topically, but more particularly the latter; an abstemious diet and proper exercise; and by a seton in the neck."
- 4 Marked by, or spent in, abstinence.
"an abstemious life"
- 5 Promotive of abstemiousness. rare
"But ſtranger Virtues yet in Streams we find, / Some change not only Bodies, but the Mind: / […] Clytorian Streams the love of Wine expel, / (Such is the virtue of th' abſtemious Well;) […]"
Adjective
- 1 sparing in consumption of especially food and drink wordnet
- 2 marked by temperance in indulgence wordnet
Example
"The professor was famous for his abstemious meals."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "abstemious"?
Common synonyms include: abstentious, abstentious, abstinent, abstinent, apostolic, ascetic.
How do you use "abstemious" in a sentence?
The professor was famous for his abstemious meals.
How do you pronounce "abstemious"?
Pronounced /æbˈstiː.mɪ.əs/.
Etymology
From Latin abstēmius (“abstaining from wine”); from ab, abs (“from”) + tēmus, a root of tēmētum (“intoxicating drink, especially strong mead or wine”) (possibly from Proto-Indo-European *temH- (“dark (referring to the colour of wine)”)) + -ous.