1
as in refusal
the act or practice of giving up or rejecting something once enjoyed or desired dieting is an endless exercise in self-denial

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2
as in temperance
voluntary restraint in the satisfaction of one's appetites self-indulgent even when she was poor, she wasn't about to practice self-denial after getting rich

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Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of self-denial Loneliness gets to the heart of the spiritual dissatisfaction and self-denial seen post-Covid and in both the pro-Hamas and pro–George Floyd rioting. Armond White, National Review, 10 May 2024 Crace transports readers 2,000 years into the past to a stark Biblical landscape full of visceral encounters, violence, self-denial, and possible miracles. Mia Barzilay Freund, Vogue, 29 Mar. 2024 The last week of January in particular would be an excellent time to decamp somewhere pretty, travel for pleasure, or do some spiritual seeking (but maybe the kind that comes with laughter and good food, and not strict rules and self-denial). Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 27 Dec. 2023 Shocking self-indulgence sits cheek by jowl with self-denial. Tobi Haslett, Harper's Magazine, 18 Sep. 2023 That an ancient philosophy based on self-denial could find an audience among TikTokers, subredditors, and gladiatorial millionaires suggested two possibilities: Stoicism either had quite a lot going for it, or nothing at all. Tom Bissell, Harper’s Magazine , 10 Apr. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-denial
Noun
  • But that read of things understates her sheer force of will—her outright refusal, as with the Oscars dress, to ever be counted out.
    Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 21 Nov. 2024
  • The refusal to engage with the subject at all since Trump won the presidency aligns with other recent trends, such as the massive ratings collapse that MSNBC has suffered post-election.
    Christian Blauvelt, IndieWire, 20 Nov. 2024
Noun
  • Some will ask why this temperance with blowing should be limited.
    Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 27 Oct. 2024
  • Hartley connected his temperance and milk crusades in An Essay on Milk from 1842, arguing that milk produced in cities was impure not just because of its adulteration by contaminants like formaldehyde, but also because of its sourcing from urban swill sheds.
    Catherine Long, JSTOR Daily, 17 Jan. 2024
Noun
  • Failing to report an accident can result in claim denials.
    Nia Bowers, Austin American-Statesman, 22 Nov. 2024
  • Metrics such as denial rates for rehabilitative services and appeal success rates should be regularly reviewed.
    Amber Nigam, Forbes, 20 Nov. 2024
Noun
  • Conclusion: Agency Portals as Fragile as Cobwebs Despite Biden’s renunciation of the Trump project, many guidance documents remain unburied.
    Clyde Wayne Crews Jr., Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
  • In 2010, the government imposed a $450 renunciation fee.
    Robert W. Wood, Forbes, 14 Oct. 2024
Noun
  • The explicit and quasi-religious abnegation of the right to violent self-defense put the national committee at odds with one of its key allies during the Saturday march: Black Lives Matter.
    Samantha Eyler, Foreign Affairs, 31 Jan. 2017
  • Is that an abnegation of interviewer responsibility?
    David Marchese David Marchese Photograph by Mamadi Doumbouya, New York Times, 8 Oct. 2023

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Cite this Entry

“Self-denial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-denial. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

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