Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The condition of being temporarily set aside; suspension.
- noun Law A condition of undetermined ownership, as of an interest in an estate that has not yet vested.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun In law, a state of expectation or contemplation.
- noun A state of suspended action or existence, or temporary inactivity.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Law) Expectancy; condition of being undetermined.
- noun Suspension; temporary suppression.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun heraldry
Expectancy of a title, its right in existence but its exercise suspended.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun temporary cessation or suspension
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
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Examples
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And they would rather hold that money in abeyance for next year.
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And they would rather hold that money in abeyance for next year.
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Futures is the award-winning science-fiction section of Nature, currently in abeyance in Nature itself but being published each month in Nature's monthly sister title, Nature Physics.
Writing Maxine 2009
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"If the socialistic spirit is to be held in abeyance in this country, businesses of this character (anthracite coal mining) must be handled with extraordinary caution."
A REVIEW 2010
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And they would rather hold that money in abeyance for next year.
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It definitely feels that it cannot ignore Christ, is not capable of leaving Christ in abeyance and then otherwise leading a busy life.
AIDS, Identity and Legacy in Contemporary Gay History « 2010
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But my impression of a suspended sentence is that it is held in abeyance unless the defendant completes a period of time without a further criminal offense.
The Volokh Conspiracy » Extending Probation Sentence Without Proof Beyond a Reasonable Doubt? 2010
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Without fossil fuels, or some form of alternative energy that can be scaled up to the consumption level of fossil fuels, these non-adaptive social systems will collapse, and all the ferocity of tribal competitiveness, which they had been holding in abeyance, will appear.
What a Bunch of Apes! « L.E. Modesitt, Jr. – The Official Website 2009
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In fact even the committed ones should put their decision in abeyance not because of popular vote or other but rather because Obama has not gone trough the procees of vetting.
Clinton reviewing 'options' - but says superdelegates could shift 2008
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Futures is the award-winning science-fiction section of Nature, currently in abeyance in Nature itself but being published each month in Nature's monthly sister title, Nature Physics.
May 2007 Maxine 2007
exquisite commented on the word abeyance
"The frame ... held a picture of what was at the best abeyance–at the worst, there came out of it a warning to the bottom of her heart, that no return can ever make restitution for the going away." - Elizabeth Bowen, The Heat of the Day
February 1, 2007
rolig commented on the word abeyance
Isn't Elizabeth Bowen a marvelous writer? She deserves to be rediscovered.
December 1, 2007
super-labmaven commented on the word abeyance
"'No essay upon sleep, however brief, is considered complete without some reference to those remarkable states of the mind (or of the brain) when the will is in abeyance and the consciousness is awake . . . "
from The Literature And Curiosities Of Dreams, by Frank Seafield; Partial Activity Of Nervous Centres. Arthur E. Durham.
October 26, 2009
inaudible commented on the word abeyance
"The most active and recognised of the Anti-Monarchist organizations in the United Kingdom, they were a central fixture in British anarchist, and to a lesser extent, republican, movements, before going into abeyance following the arrest of 41 members in the aftermath of protests against the Queen's Golden Jubilee."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Movement_against_the_monarchy
April 18, 2010
tontoino commented on the word abeyance
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June 11, 2011
kingparton commented on the word abeyance
Every creative writer, even the most immature, knows the sensation of a conscious mind in abeyance while the hand goes writing, writing at the dictation of some inner force.
Burges Johnson, Essaying the Essay
July 26, 2011
Azr commented on the word abeyance
'besitzloser Zustand'; to be in abeyance 'ausser Kraft gesetzt sein'
S: Suspension, temporary Cessation, Expectancy (; undetermined Condition)
A: Resumption, Continuation, Activity
October 25, 2013