English
abstain
Abstain comes from Middle English absteynen ‘to avoid, stay away from, refrain from…’, from Latin abstineō ‘to hold oneself back’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ten- ‘to stretch, draw’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ten-1‘to stretch, draw’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*tenēō1‘to hold’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEteneō2‘to hold’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEabstineō2‘to hold oneself back’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400astenir2
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500absteynen2‘to avoid, stay away from, refrain from partaking of’
- Englishearliest quotation 1597abstain2
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Latin teneo
- 2 Wiktionary, English abstain
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1597, Shakespeare, Richard II: “Who abstains from meat that is not gaunt?”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ten-Wiktionary, Latin teneo‘to stretch, draw’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*tenēōWiktionary, Latin teneo‘to hold’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEteneōWiktionary, English abstain‘to hold’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEabstineōWiktionary, English abstain‘to hold oneself back’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400astenirWiktionary, English abstain
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500absteynenWiktionary, English abstain‘to avoid, stay away from, refrain from partaking of’
- Englishearliest quotation 1597abstainWiktionary, English abstain. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1597, Shakespeare, Richard II: “Who abstains from meat that is not gaunt?”
first attested First attested around 1380 (as stated in Wiktionary’s etymology)
The story
First attested around 1380.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ten- ‘to stretch, draw’
tight, tone, ton, tune, maintenance, entertainment, tender, obtain, tonic, tendon, pertinent, tenacious, pristine, countenance, tetanus, tantra, retentive, tendinitis, hypotenuse, maintainer, 63 more
through Proto-Italic *tenēō ‘to hold’
container, incontinent, 19 more
through Latin teneō ‘to hold’
content, continue, tennis, continuous, detention, contain, continent, retention, tenant, retain, tenor, continuum, sustain, tenacity, rein, tenet, tenement, sustenance, incontinence, detain, retinue, pertain, tenable, continence, 21 more
through Latin abstineō ‘to hold oneself back’
Today it means
verb Keep or withhold oneself.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “abstain”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Latin teneo. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ten- / abstain