abstain

/əbˈsteɪn/

//əbˈsteɪn// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"abstain" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“abstain” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,318. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,318
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Keep or withhold oneself.

Corpus desk

Index EN-abstain · abstain · English

abstain · rank #26,318 · 10 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #26,318
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH abnormally

Nearest frequency peer: abnormally (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “abstain”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “abstain” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

abstain vs Austin
57% similar
abstain vs attain
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for abstain
PropertyValue
Headwordabstain
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/əbˈsteɪn/
Letters7
Frequency rank#26,318
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “abstain”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).abstainlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “abnormally” (#26,317), “Adriana” (#26,319), “affections” (#26,320). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “abstain” is #26,318. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around abstain (IPA /əbˈsteɪn/), averb. Corpus frequency is #26,318 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for abstain, with forms such as "abbstain", "absatin", and "absstain". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "Austin", "attain", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested around 1380. From Middle English absteynen, absteinen, abstenen, from Old French astenir, abstenir, from Latin abstineō (“to hold oneself back”) from abs- (“from”) + teneō (“I hold”). See also tenable. The correct English form is abstain, spelled A-B-S-T-A-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Keep or withhold oneself.
  2. 2
    Refrain from (something or doing something); keep from doing, especially an indulgence.
  3. 3
    Refrain from (something or doing something); keep from doing, especially an indulgence.
  4. 4
    Fast (not eat for a period).
  5. 5
    Deliberately refrain from casting one's vote at a meeting where one is present.
  6. 6
    Hinder; keep back; withhold.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how abstain appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. In order to improve his health, Rob decided to abstain from smoking.
  2. Who abstains from meat that is not gaunt?

Etymology

First attested around 1380. From Middle English absteynen, absteinen, abstenen, from Old French astenir, abstenir, from Latin abstineō (“to hold oneself back”) from abs- (“from”) + teneō (“I hold”). See also tenable.

Synonyms

abjuredeny oneselfforbearforgogive uprefrainrelinquishwithhold

This word in other languages

abstenerse(Español)s'abstenir(Français)verzichten(Deutsch)impedir(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • abbstain
  • absatin
  • absstain
  • abstainn
  • abstani
  • abstian
  • absttain
  • abtsain
  • asbtain
  • bastain

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of abstain - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

abbstain1absatin2absstain1abstainn1abstani2abstian2absttain1abtsain2
Edit distance from "abstain"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "abstain"?
"abstain" is spelled A-B-S-T-A-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /əbˈsteɪn/.
What does "abstain" mean?
As a verb, "abstain" means: Keep or withhold oneself.
What words are commonly confused with "abstain"?
"abstain" is commonly confused with "Austin", "attain". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "abstain"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "abstain" is /əbˈsteɪn/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "abstain"?
First attested around 1380. From Middle English absteynen, absteinen, abstenen, from Old French astenir, abstenir, from Latin abstineō (“to hold oneself back”) from abs- (“from”) + teneō (“I hold”). See also tenable. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "abstain", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Adriana#26,319Woodley#26,309willful#26,308whiting#26,307

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

allegory10 variantsaverted10 variantsviceroy10 variantsvaulted10 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list