abnegation
nounUK /ˌæbnɪˈɡeɪʃən/ · US /ˌæbnəˈɡeɪʃən/
Etymology First attested before 1398. From Middle English abnegacioun, borrowed from Latin abnegātiō, from abnegō (“refuse, deny”), from ab (“off”) + negō (“deny; refuse, say no”). Compare French abnégation.
1
A denial; a renunciation; denial of desire or self-interest.
- With abnegation of God, of his honor, and of religion, they may retain the friendship of the court.1558, John Knox, Letter to the Queen Dowager:
- Tony's face expressed relief, and Nettie sat silent for a moment until the vicar said “It was a generous impulse, but it may have been a momentary one, while in the case of monk and crusader there must have been a sustaining purpose, and possibly a great abnegation, a leaving of lands and possessions.”1907 January, Harold Bindloss, chapter 20, in The Dust of Conflict, 1st Canadian edition, Toronto, Ont.: McLeod & Allen, →OCLC:
1 more example
- We're repeatedly told how Chilean women were "trained since early childhood for a life of virtue, faith and abnegation," how "their fate was a marriage of convenience and motherhood.1999 November 2, Michiko Kakutani, “Books of The Times: A Single Girl Takes On the California Frontier”, in The New York Times (E section), New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 7:
- Derived terms
- self-abnegation
- Related terms
- abnegate, abnegator, abnegatory