Ab*ste"mi*ous (&?;), a. [L. abstemius;
ab, abs + root of temetum intoxicating drink.]
1. Abstaining from wine. [Orig. Latin
sense.]
Under his special eye
Abstemious I grew up and thrived amain.
Milton.
2. Sparing in diet; refraining from a free use of
food and strong drinks; temperate; abstinent; sparing in the indulgence of
the appetite or passions.
Instances of longevity are chiefly among the
abstemious.
Arbuthnot.
3. Sparingly used; used with temperance or
moderation; as, an abstemious diet. Gibbon.
4. Marked by, or spent in, abstinence; as, an
abstemious life. "One abstemious day."
Pope.
5. Promotive of abstemiousness. [R.]
Such is the virtue of the abstemious well.
Dryden.
