celibate

Definition of celibatenext
as in chaste
not engaging in sexual intercourse celibate monks and nuns They have chosen to lead celibate lives.

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of celibate The former Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood star, who was a member of the boy band B2K before going solo in 2005, is no longer celibate, and is a father to son Megaa, 11, and daughter A’mei, 9, with ex-girlfriend Apryl Jones. Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 18 Nov. 2025 While the audience was instantly compelled by her newscaster cadence, pearl clutching, and disastrous, celibate relationship, her fellow Housewives thought it was all put on for the cameras. Tom Smyth, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2025 And celibacy, as Christ was celibate. Khaleda Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Aug. 2025 For many traditionalists, effective enforcement of this teaching would mean cracking down on homosexuality among the clergy, including gay clergy who are celibate and chaste. Massimo Faggioli, Foreign Affairs, 11 Oct. 2018 See All Example Sentences for celibate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for celibate
Adjective
  • He had been engaged in a months-long chaste affair with Jane Seymour that Anne was aware of and angry about.
    Fiction Non Fiction, Literary Hub, 14 May 2026
  • Consider flowering dogwood, chaste tree, dwarf Italian cypress, or Little Gem magnolia instead.
    Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 10 May 2026
Adjective
  • Like Ash Wednesday, Good Friday is a day where Catholics are obliged to fast and stay abstinent throughout the day until midnight.
    Mariyam Muhammad, Cincinnati Enquirer, 1 Apr. 2026
  • At the end of six months, those who had taken just one dose of psilocybin had more than six times greater odds of being abstinent from cigarettes than their counterparts who relied on the nicotine substitute.
    Will Stone, NPR, 10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • Transfers to spouses, but not to unmarried partners, are exempt.
    Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes.com, 16 May 2026
  • Yoriko Endo, an unmarried woman in her early 40s or so, grew up in Nagi and went away to attend art school but came back to live on the family farm.
    Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 13 May 2026
Adjective
  • Each statue the perfect epitome of silent, mothering, virginal womanhood that Ireland had come to worship.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 May 2026
  • In the first season of Sam Levinson’s salacious teen drama, Euphoria, every episode opened with a deep dive into one of the characters’ pasts, which complicated their archetypes: the bro-y jock was troubled by his sexuality; the most virginal girl in her friend group was a camgirl.
    Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 13 Apr. 2026
Adjective
  • These armed hostilities have maimed, mutilated and killed millions of human beings — many of them innocent civilians.
    Letters to the Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 May 2026
  • Becerra may have been an innocent victim, but $120,000 a year is a lot of money to pay someone to babysit a largely unused stack of cash.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 14 May 2026
Adjective
  • With food processor running, slowly add 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil.
    Maggie Meyer Glisan, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 May 2026
  • Also, there are still several ships at sea carrying inventory from before the war, meaning cheap virgin supplies are still making their way to processors.
    Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Celibate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/celibate. Accessed 20 May. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on celibate

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster