Certain people stop drinking because they want to improve their physical and mental health. Teetotaler organizations usually demand that their members not produce or promote alcoholic beverages as part of their commitment. There are numerous reasons why a person might choose to become a teetotaler. He wrote a “T” next to attendees who pledged alcoholic temperance. There are dozens of reasons people might have for not drinking, from health conditions, allergies, and pregnancy to addiction and dependency. Among drinkers, Chad and a number of other Muslim-majority countries top the global ranking for alcohol consumption.

Why Is Not Drinking Called T Total?

• Light and moderate drinkers tended to live longer than those who either abstained or drank heavily.
• A person who practices (and possibly advocates) teetotalism is called a teetotaler (plural teetotalers) or is simply said to be teetotal.
• I then signed the moderation pledge, and in about ten days after I signed the tee-total, and can say solemnly, that nothing that can intoxicate has entered my mouth, except on sacramental occasions, since that time.

T-totally as an emphatic form of “totally,” though not in an abstinence sense, is recorded in 1832 in a representation of U.S. You’re a good sayman for that same, says he, an’ it would be right at any other time than this present, says he, but it’s onpossible now, tee-totally, on account o’ the war, says he. The planos will be aroused, and we will all fight on ’em bodiaciously, and tee totally abflisticate ’em off the face of the yearth!

More Words with Remarkable Origins

A number of Christian denominations forbid the consumption of alcohol, or recommend the non-consumption thereof, including certain Anabaptist denominations such as the Mennonites (both Old Order Mennonites and Conservative Mennonites), Church of the Brethren, Beachy Amish and New Order Amish. Teetotalers.—The origin of this convenient word, (as convenient almost, although not so general in its application as loafer,) is, we imagine, known but to few who use it. Since at first it was used in other contexts as an emphasised form of total, the tee- is presumably a reduplication of the first letter of total, much as contemporary idiom might say “total with a capital T”. The word is first recorded in 1832 in a general sense in an American source, and in 1833 in England in the context of abstinence.

The adverb tee-totally appears in the American press by 3 September 1830, when the New-York Spectator published a series of five letters on the congressional elections of that year. Mr. Plane said, “he differed tee-totally from the attorney in his last assertion, whom he was sorry to see so deficient in the history of his country.” Teetotal and teetotaler first appeared with their current meanings in 1834, eight years after the formation of the American Temperance Society. A 2015 study by the Office for National Statistics showed that young Britons were more likely to be teetotallers than their parents. Hindus are prohibited from drinking alcohol “as it has a direct impact on the nervous system, leading to actions that a sound person normally would not.”

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• During the 19th and 20th centuries, the temperance movement gained recognition in numerous countries.
• Hindus are prohibited from drinking alcohol “as it has a direct impact on the nervous system, leading to actions that a sound person normally would not.”
• For those of us who enjoy an alcoholic beverage, it’s best to keep in mind that most activities in moderation aren’t harmful.
• The Eastern Mediterranean Region, consisting of the Muslim countries in the Middle East and North Africa, is by far the lowest alcohol-consuming region in the world, both in terms of total adult per-capita consumption and prevalence of non-drinkers, i.e., 87.8 percent lifetime abstainers.

The research hinted that students are less likely to give in to peer pressure if they have strong friendships and make a decision not to drink before social interactions. Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Lutheran Churches, Oriental Orthodox Churches, and the Anglican Communion all require wine in their central religious rite of the Eucharist (Holy Communion). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints rejects alcohol based upon the Word of Wisdom. The Church of the Nazarene and Wesleyan Methodist Church, both denominations in the Wesleyan tradition, teach abstinence. We implore members to accept the advice and counsel of the church and abstain from all of the above.

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According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the tee- in teetotal is the letter T, so it is actually t-total, though it was never spelled that way. It’s best to drink responsibly and moderate your pace of drinking. This includes heading out to a restaurant or bar for a night of drinking. For those of us who enjoy an alcoholic beverage, it’s best to keep in mind that most activities in moderation aren’t harmful. The decision to abstain from alcohol provides benefits for the people who choose to do so.

Teetotal refers to the complete abstinence from alcoholic drinks, or more generally from any intoxicant. More likely, the “tee” that begins the word teetotal is a reduplication of the letter “t” that begins total, emphasizing that one has pledged total abstinence. Ibn Majah and al-Tirmidhi narrated an authentic hadith that if a Muslim drinks alcohol and does not repent, they would enter Hell after death and be “made to drink from the pus of the people of Jahannum.” Muslims believe that Allah will not accept the prayers of a repentant individual until forty days after the consumption of an alcoholic drink. Some Christians choose to practice teetotalism throughout the Lent season, giving up alcoholic beverages as their Lenten sacrifice.

Origin of: Teetotal

Some people don’t drink simply because they don’t like to. Not single words (although I’ve seen the second one hyphenated), but “cheap drunks” and “two pot screamers” are people who are/become “easily in their cups”/easily drunk. I then signed the moderation pledge, and in about ten days after I signed the tee-total, and can say solemnly, that nothing that can intoxicate has entered my mouth, except on sacramental occasions, since that time.

Other Words from teetotalism Example Sentences Learn More About teetotalism. Century Dictionary allows that “the word may have originated independently in the two countries,” OED (1989) favors the British origin and notes that Webster (1847) calls teetotaler “a cant word formed in England.” The term is also said to have been introduced in 1827 in a New York temperance society which recorded a T after the signature of those who had pledged total abstinence, but contemporary evidence for this is wanting.

What can I do instead of drinking?

Others don’t like the taste of alcohol or have had negative experiences with alcohol. They can include health and medical concerns, family or social influences, philosophical or political ideologies, past alcoholism, and religious beliefs. As early as 1827, some members of Temperance Societies reportedly signed a “T” after their name to signify their commitment to temperance.

Additionally, the majority of Muslims do not drink and believe consuming alcohol is forbidden (haram). Muslim countries have low rates of alcohol consumption, with many enforcing a policy of prohibition. In Hinduism, the consumption of alcohol and other intoxicants, called surāpāna, is considered the second mahāpātaka, or great sin. However, the term ‘wine’ (and similar terms) being consumed by God’s people occurs over two hundred times in both the Old and New Testament. This dates back to the early years of the organisation, and the missionary work among alcoholics. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Seventh-day Adventists, and Holiness Pentecostals also preach abstinence from alcohol and other drugs.

It originated, as we learn from the Landmark, with a man named Turner, a member of the Preston Temperance Society, who, having an impediment of speech, in addressing a meeting remarked, that partial abstinence from intoxicating liquors would not do; they must insist upon tee-tee-(stammering) tee total abstinence. A number of temperance organizations have been founded in order to promote teetotalism and provide spaces for nondrinkers to socialise. The temperance movement is a social effort that opposes the consumption of alcoholic beverages. The teetotalism movement began in Preston, England, in the early 19th century. After his speech, it was reported in print as ‘teetotal’ and thus a new word was born. Its first usage in connection with alcohol is attributed to an Englishman, Richard Turner, in a speech he made in 1833 in Preston, advocating t-total abstinence from alcohol.

Learn a new word every day. To be included in this list, individuals must be well known for their abstention from alcohol, their advocacy efforts, or both.Individuals whose abstention from alcohol is not a defining characteristic or feature of their notability are intentionally excluded. A study published in April 2023 by the International Wine and Spirits Record (IWSR) revealed that millennials were key drivers of no-alcohol growth in the United States, with 45% of no-alcohol beer consumers in the US being millennials. Teetotalism has become increasingly common amongst younger generations, particularly millennials and Gen Zers.

When it comes to alcohol consumption and why is it called t total depression, a new study shows that heavy drinkers — but also teetotalers — have higher levels of depression and anxiety than those who drink moderately. The use in temperance jargon was noted by September 1833 in reports of a speech advocating total abstinence (from beer as well as wine and liquor) by Richard “Dicky” Turner, a working-man from Preston, England. “of, pertaining to, or involving total abstinence from intoxicating drink,” 1834, a colloquial word, perhaps from total (adj.) with a reduplication of the initial T- for emphasis (“trouble with a capital T”).

It describes wine consumed by God’s people, including the first noted miracle by Jesus. Many Christian groups, including Methodists and Quakers, have traditionally supported the temperance movement and prohibition. It’s necessary for a recovering alcoholic to avoid alcohol, even if it means staying out of bars and pubs. Some people choose to avoid alcohol because they depended on it in the past, and now they’re in recovery. According to historian Daniel Walker Howe, the word came from Lyman Beecher, an American preacher and temperance advocate. A reinterpretation of temperance total may have contributed to its linguistic origin and development.

If they manifest an unwilling or arbitrary spirit, they subject themselves to the discipline of the church, even to expulsion in extreme cases. Conservative Anabaptist denominations of Christianity proscribe the use of alcohol and other drugs. Hear “t total” pronounced