Athletes usually abstain from smoking.
Source: tatoeba (26542)
Abstain
/əbˈsteɪn/
Synonyms for "abstain" (112 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (23)
Strong matches (33)
Related words (56)
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: refrain, desist, withhold, abjure, abnegate.
- Sentence evidence is available for abstain, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from wiktionary, wordnet, opengloss, moby, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "abstain".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "abstain"
Keep "abstain" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "abstain" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "abstain", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "abstain" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
6 entriesMore specific
6 entriesalcohol abstentionballot abstentioncaffeine abstentiondietary abstentionelectoral abstentionvoting abstention
Collocations
6 entriesabstain from alcoholabstain from caffeineabstain from foodabstain from meatabstain from tobaccoabstain from voting
Inflections
3 entriesDerivations
5 entriesAntonyms
1 entriesTranslations
83 translations across 39 languages.
Arabic
1 entries- اِمْتَنَعَ verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Armenian
1 entries- ձեռնպահ լինել verb (refrain from voting)
Bangi
1 entries- kila verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Bulgarian
1 entries- въздържам се verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Catalan
1 entries- abstenir-se verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Chinese Mandarin
3 entries- 戒除 verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- 棄權 /弃权 verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- 避免 verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Czech
2 entries- zdržet se verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- zdržet se verb (refrain from voting)
Danish
3 entries- afholde sig verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- afholde sig (fra at stemme) verb (refrain from voting)
- afstå verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Dutch
3 entries- abstineren verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- zich onthouden verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- zich onthouden (van stemming) verb (refrain from voting)
Esperanto
1 entries- abstini verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Finnish
3 entries- kieltäytyä verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- pidättäytyä verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- äänestää tyhjää verb (refrain from voting)
French
2 entries- s'abstenir verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- s'abstenir verb (refrain from voting)
German
2 entries- sich enthalten verb (refrain from voting)
- verzichten verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Gothic
1 entries- 𐌲𐌰𐌸𐌰𐍂𐌱𐌰𐌽 verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Hebrew
3 entries- התנזר verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- נמנע verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- נמנע verb (refrain from voting)
Hungarian
3 entries- (meg)tartóztatja magát verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- tartózkodik verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- tartózkodik verb (refrain from voting)
Ido
1 entries- abstenar verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Italian
2 entries- astenersi verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- astenersi verb (refrain from voting)
Japanese
3 entries- 差し控える verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- 慎む verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- 投票を棄権する verb (refrain from voting)
Lao
1 entries- ງົດອອກສຽງ verb (refrain from voting)
Latin
1 entries- abstineo verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Lingala
1 entries- kila verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Mongo
1 entries- kila verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Māori
3 entries- papare verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- pare verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- wainamu verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Norwegian Bokmål
4 entries- abstinere verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- avholde seg verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- avstå verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- stemme blankt verb (refrain from voting)
Old English
1 entries- forbūgan verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Polish
4 entries- powstrzymać się verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- powstrzymywać się verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- wstrzymać się verb (refrain from voting)
- wstrzymywać się verb (refrain from voting)
Portuguese
3 entries- abster-se verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- abster-se verb (refrain from voting)
- privar-se verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Romanian
1 entries- abține verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Russian
2 entries- возде́рживаться verb (refrain from voting)
- воздержа́ться verb (refrain from voting)
Serbo-Croatian
4 entries- apstinírati verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- apstinírati verb (refrain from voting)
- sustezati verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- suzdržávati verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Sinhalese
1 entries- වළකිනවා verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Slovene
1 entries- vzdržati se verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Spanish
2 entries- abstenerse verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- abstenerse verb (refrain from voting)
Swedish
4 entries- avhålla sig verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- avstå verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- lägga ned sin röst verb (refrain from voting)
- röstskolka verb (refrain from voting)
Thai
1 entries- งดออกเสียง verb (refrain from voting)
Tày
1 entries- căm verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Ukrainian
4 entries- утри́матися verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- утри́матися verb (refrain from voting)
- утри́муватися verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
- утри́муватися verb (refrain from voting)
Woiwurrung
1 entries- nin'wilt-teni verb (refrain from — see also refrain)
Sample sentences
17 total sentences available.
The doctor advised him to abstain from drinking.
Source: tatoeba (27934)
The doctor has ordered the patient to abstain from wine.
Source: tatoeba (27998)
My father tries to abstain from drinking.
Source: tatoeba (251670)
Showing 4 of 17 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "abstain"?
Closest matches include refrain, desist, withhold, abjure, abnegate.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "abstain"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.