Abstemious

Abstemious is an adjective that means marked by restraint with food or alcohol. Our word of the day combines the Latin prefix A-B-S, meaning ‘from’ or ‘away’ with the suffix  temetum (TEM ay tomb) which refers to ‘intoxicating drink.’ As the word evolved, it came to refer to things other than alcohol. For example: When Chuck needed to lose weight, I worried about his ability to stick to a healthy diet. When it comes to his eating habits, he’s not exactly known for having an abstemious temperament.