abstinence only

noun

A form of sex education that advocates only abstinence as a means to avoid pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

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Meanings

nounabstinence only (uncountable)
  1. uncountableA form of sex education that advocates only abstinence as a means to avoid pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

    Not only was the federal government encouraging abstinence only; […].

    2003, Judith Levine, Harmful to Minors: The Perils of Protecting Children from Sex, page 101
    3 more examples

    Programs have been developed that either advocate abstinence only […] or abstinence-plus […].

    2002, Marysol Asencio, Sex and Sexuality Among New York's Puerto Rican Youth, page 149

    Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas specify the teaching of abstinence only until marriage.

    2002, Larry D. Burlew, Dave Capuzzi, Sexuality Counseling, page 75

    […] directly to organizations that teach abstinence only without going through the states.

    2006, David Cooper, Broken America, page 182
Cite this entry
APA

abstinence only. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abstinence%20only

MLA

“abstinence only.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abstinence%20only. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “abstinence only,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/abstinence%20only.

Source: abstinence only on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.