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abstemious

adjective/əbˈstiːmɪəs/

C2CEFR level
75/100Rarity: rare
FormalRegister

Sparing and self-restrained, especially in eating and drinking.

An abstemious man, he took only bread and water while the others feasted.

Similar: temperate, moderate, ascetic

Origin: From Latin abstemius, from abs- 'away from' + temetum 'intoxicating drink'.

Topic: self-restraint in General English

Rarity runs from 0 (a word everyone knows) to 100 (almost never seen outside specialist or literary writing). Level is the word's real difficulty on the CEFR scale, from A1 to C2.

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