self-denial

Refusing personal pleasures

Self-denial is the practice of refusing oneself pleasures or comforts, often for moral, religious, or disciplinary reasons.

It suggests voluntary sacrifice rather than deprivation imposed from outside: Years of self-denial had made him austere.

The term carries overtones of virtue or asceticism, though it can shade into unhealthy self-punishment.

abstinence

fasting

Deliberate food avoidance

refraining · abstention · moderation · forbearance · celibacy · chastity · continence · purification · nonindulgence · renouncing

sacrifice

altruism

Prioritizing others' wellbeing

abnegation · renunciation · generosity · devotion · foregoing · giving up · nobility · heroism · service · offering

asceticism

monastic

Of religious community life

  • austerityEnforced economic stringency
  • hermitPerson choosing total seclusion
  • monkCloistered religious devotee

nun · reclusion · minimalism · puritanism · stoicism · spartan · frugality · simplicity · vow · piety

willpower

determination

Firmness of purpose

grit · perseverance · tenacity · steadfastness · endurance · resilience · resistance · inhibition · suppression · impulse control

Categories
Opposites
personal gratification

self-denialself-indulgence

Excessive yielding to desires

indulgence · hedonism · self-gratification · intemperance · excess

acceptance vs. rejection

self-denialacceptance

Consent to receive

embrace · self-acceptance · embracement · self-affirmation · adoption

moral orientation toward self

self-denialegoism

Doctrine of self-motivation

selfishness · self-centeredness · egotism · self-interest · self-serving

Family

self, deny, denial, denied, undeniable, undeniably, denies, self-denying, selfhood

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Used worldwide · Timeless · Abstract · Negative · Everyday, not technical · Rated G