How to Use abstain in a Sentence

abstain

verb

• Ten members voted for the proposal, six members voted against it, and two abstained.
• For some people, this will mean choosing to vote for one of the candidates instead of abstaining.
  — Michael Bruter and Sarah Harrison, TIME, 31 Oct. 2024
• But should other people cancel, postpone or abstain from travel?
  — Danielle Braff, Washington Post, 7 Mar. 2020
• Parents can order signature holiday cocktails, while children and grownups who abstain can enjoy hot chocolate and apple cider.
  — Margaux Lushing, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
• Jha worries that if authorities then ask the public to adhere to more strenuous measures, like abstaining from the temple or shutting down schools, people may not listen.
  — Sanya Mansoor, Time, 12 Mar. 2020
• The Minnesota Catholic Conference advised bishops that asking priests to abstain from voting was in their legal purview.
  — USA TODAY, 3 Mar. 2020
• Brooks Koepka and four other golfers will abstain from competing in the tournament after members of their teams tested positive for the coronavirus.
  — Spencer Neale, Washington Examiner, 24 June 2020
• The family also requested that senior citizens abstain.
  — Manavi Kapur, Quartz India, 19 Mar. 2020
• Of the 20 clubs, 14 agreed to the change, five voted against and one abstained.
  — The Associated Press, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2017
• Medvedev agreed to abstain and, a few hours later, the vote passed.
  — Kim Ghattas, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2022
• More than a dozen House members abstained from the vote.
  — CBS News, 30 May 2023
• Li got 2,936 votes, with three votes cast against him and eight abstained.
  — Laura He, CNN, 10 Mar. 2023
• Burnley chose to abstain, whilst the remaining 14 were in favour of the change.
  — SI.com, 26 Aug. 2019
• The most effective way to avoid any risks of cannabis use is to abstain from use.
  — James Hamblin, The Atlantic, 18 Aug. 2017
• As a result, the King abstains from elections to this day.
  — Anna Gordon, TIME, 24 May 2024
• The Netherlands hasn’t let go of the issue but agreed to abstain from the vote, allowing the plan to get the go-ahead.
  — Robert Goulder, Forbes, 5 July 2022
• But who will manage to abstain from hooking up, and who will break the rules in record time?
  — Amy MacKelden, ELLE, 8 Dec. 2022
• Two members abstained from the vote and three were absent.
  — Allison Kite, kansascity, 14 May 2018
• Many of these voters will abstain in the May 7 second round, polls show.
  — Helene Fouquet, Bloomberg.com, 28 Apr. 2017
• The judge ordered Wright to abstain from any substance abuse.
  — Jason Meisner, chicagotribune.com, 9 Dec. 2020
• The proposals passed with a total of 647 votes for and eight against, with five votes to abstain.
  — Jonathan M. Pitts, baltimoresun.com, 13 June 2019
• If the chief justice abstained from breaking a tie, the motion would fail.
  — Nicholas Fandos, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2020
• Scott Bailey was the lone board member to abstain from the final vote on the agreement.
  — oregonlive.com, 26 June 2019
• Forty-five members abstained, and the rest were absent.
  — New York Times, 13 June 2018
• Nine voted against, 35 abstained and 21 did not cast a vote.
  — NBC News, 23 Feb. 2018
• As for now, the designer mama hopes that the haters will abstain from her page.
  — Kelly Corbett, House Beautiful, 16 Dec. 2020
• New York had to abstain from the vote due to the fact that the state assembly hadn't yet given their approval.
  — Alex Aronson, Popular Mechanics, 21 June 2019
• Adi abstained from the vote, and the three other members voted in favor of the motion.
  — The Enquirer, 20 Mar. 2024
• Most club members abstained from the vote, but six voted with Baraka, enough to kill the club’s chances for now.
  — Heather Knight, San Francisco Chronicle, 6 May 2023
• Again, good reasons to cut back or abstain (and in time maybe explore the root of those feelings).
  — Alan Dybner, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 June 2023

Last Updated: 17 Dec 2024