as in purity
abstention from sexual intercourse
a widower who has maintained absolute celibacy since the death of his wife
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Recent Examples of celibacy
Benedict became a rallying point for right-wing Catholics incensed at Francis and his reforms — which included outreach to gay Catholics, relaxing rules on priestly celibacy and allowing divorced and remarried believers to receive communion.
—
Howard Chua-Eoan, Mercury News, 22 Apr. 2025
Who knows, maybe Frank’s exploration of gender and sexuality, and his struggles with celibacy in the wake of those, will somehow come into play once Frank gets to meet the man who either murdered his father or is his father.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 16 Mar. 2025
In the medieval church, women’s roles were limited – usually some form of enclosure and celibacy, such as becoming an anchoress walled up alone for life, or a nun in a classic convent.
—Joelle Rollo-Koster, The Conversation, 25 Feb. 2025
But Cole is resolute in his pre-marital celibacy.
—Big Think, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for celibacy
Howard Chua-Eoan, Mercury News, 22 Apr. 2025
Who knows, maybe Frank’s exploration of gender and sexuality, and his struggles with celibacy in the wake of those, will somehow come into play once Frank gets to meet the man who either murdered his father or is his father.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 16 Mar. 2025
In the medieval church, women’s roles were limited – usually some form of enclosure and celibacy, such as becoming an anchoress walled up alone for life, or a nun in a classic convent.
—Joelle Rollo-Koster, The Conversation, 25 Feb. 2025
But Cole is resolute in his pre-marital celibacy.
—Big Think, 26 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for celibacy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for celibacy
Noun
-
Iran currently enriches uranium to 60% purity, close to weapons-grade levels, making the negotiations urgent.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 May 2025
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Right now, Iran is enriching uranium to up to 60% purity, well beyond the confines of the 2015 nuclear deal that President Donald Trump withdrew from in 2018.—
Trey Yingst,
FOXNews.com,
19 May 2025
Noun
-
He’s taken vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience and lived in a community with other priests.—
Erika Page,
Christian Science Monitor,
8 May 2025
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The dismissal came after a more than year long dispute between the nuns and the diocese that began when Olson investigated a report that the nuns’ leader, the Rev. Mother Teresa Agnes Gerlach, broke her chastity vows with a priest from outside the diocese.—
Elizabeth Campbell,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
21 Apr. 2025
Noun
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But outside, the infrastructure available to him was built on abstinence.—
Ethan Brooks,
The Atlantic,
23 Apr. 2025
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By 1982, schools in Pennsylvania, Florida, and Ohio had challenged the book for not promoting abstinence or monogamy.—
Shannon Carlin,
Time,
8 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Celibacy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/celibacy. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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