Verb
To hold one's self aloof; to forbear or refrain voluntarily, and especially from an indulgence of the passions or appetites; -- with from.
To hinder; to withhold.
Source: Webster's dictionaryIt is folly to abstain all day long from food, but fail to abstain from sin and selfishness. John Chrysostom
God has given this way of life to Israel: to abstain from everything which is contrary to nature, that is to say, anger, fits of passion, jealousy, hatred and slandering the brethren; in short, everything that is characteristic of the old man. Poemen
Could the activity of thinking as such, the habit of examining whatever happens to come to pass or to attract attention, regardless of results and specific content, could this activity be among the conditions that make men abstain from evil-doing? Hannah Arendt
True science teaches us to doubt and to abstain from ignorance. Claude Bernard
It is easier to abstain than to restrain. French Proverb
Do not abstain from sowing for fear of the pigeons. French Proverb