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Synonyms

celibate

American  
[sel-uh-bit, -beyt] / ˈsɛl ə bɪt, -ˌbeɪt /

noun

  1. a person who abstains from sexual relations.

  2. a person who remains unmarried, especially for religious reasons.

adjective

  1. observing or pertaining to sexual abstention or a religious vow not to marry.

  2. not married.

celibate British  
/ ˈsɛlɪbɪt /

noun

  1. a person who is unmarried, esp one who has taken a religious vow of chastity

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. unmarried, esp by vow

  2. abstaining from sexual intercourse

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • celibacy noun
  • noncelibate adjective
  • uncelibate adjective

Etymology

Origin of celibate

First recorded in 1605–15; from Latin caelib- (stem of caelebs ) “unmarried” + -ate 1

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.