abnegation

[ ab-ni-gey-shuhn ]

noun

1. the act or an instance of abnegating, or denying oneself some rights, conveniences, etc.:

   It was a time of austerity and abnegation.

2. the act of relinquishing or giving up a right, possession, etc.:

   abnegation of parental responsibilities.

Word History and Origins

Origin of abnegation¹

First recorded in 1350–1400, for an earlier sense; from Late Latin abnegation-, stem of abnegatio “denial,” equivalent to Latin abnegāt(us), past participle of abnegāre “to deny” + -iō -ion ( def ); abnegate ( def )

Example Sentences

I tell my daughter about her bodily sovereignty, and Idaho responds by asserting its own control, demanding abnegation — annihilation, even — at the altar of the unborn.

From Seattle Times

Above all, it requires an abnegation of the self.

From Washington Post

Through this, the book shows that there is little space for pleasure-seeking or art-making for a girl like Selin; that being free as a young Turkish American woman-artist in 1996 is not so simple as opting out of marriage and motherhood; that plenty of moments of passive violence, self-destruction and abnegation lie in wait.

From Los Angeles Times

And when the government subsequently ignored those legal protections — prompting lawyers to bring the issue to the court in a second case — the court failed to take meaningful action, a failure that some commentators have termed an "evasion by abnegation."

From Salon

I would even encourage you to start thinking badly of your father, who has ignored his wife’s decision to demonize and torment two of his children in a cowardly abnegation of his parental duty to care for and protect you both.

From Slate