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Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
desist
verb
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
cease and desist
▪ He commanded all law violators to cease and desist.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ Blaine would not desist in her insistence.
▪ But they differ from normal girls in the extent to which they pursue these activities and their inability to desist from them.
▪ Guidelines have been issued to them on the point at which they must desist from the chase because of danger to the public.
▪ However, the professor was able to convince them to desist by arguing that they lacked sufficient grounds for their demand.
▪ It would be wise to desist from this activity forthwith.
▪ One person might consider it his moral duty to fight and another to desist from fighting.
▪ Perhaps the presence of her young mistress made her desist from talk.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Desist

Desist \De*sist"\ (?; 277), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Desisted; p. pr. & vb. n. Desisting.] [L. desistere; de- + sistere to stand, stop, fr. stare to stand: cf. F. d['e]sister. See Stand.] To cease to proceed or act; to stop; to forbear; -- often with from.

Never desisting to do evil.
--E. Hall.

To desist from his bad practice.
--Massinger.

Desist (thou art discern'd, And toil'st in vain).
--Milton.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
desist

mid-15c., from Middle French désister (mid-14c.), from Latin desistere "to stand aside, leave off, cease," from de- "off" (see de-) + sistere "stop, come to a stand" (see assist). Related: Desisted; desisting.

Wiktionary
desist

vb. (context intransitive English) To cease to proceed or act; to stop; to forbear; -- often with ''from''.

WordNet
desist

v. choose no to consume; "I abstain from alcohol" [syn: abstain, refrain] [ant: consume]

Wikipedia

Usage examples of "desist".

Now and again the male ceboid would speak harshly to them, and for a moment they would desist and be all business, but soon they were at it again.

On this condition they would desist from further hostilities, but if it was not complied with, they announced that they would continue a mortal war to the end.

He further argued that, in the absence of a US demarche to Athens, warning the dictators to desist, it might be assumed that the United States was indifferent to this.

I felt that those walls and over-hanging gables of mildewed brick and fungoid plaster and timber - with eyelike, diamond-paned windows that leered - could hardly desist from advancing and crushing me .

Somerset was well apprised of all these alarming circumstances, and endeavored, by the most friendly expedients, by entreaty, reason, and even by heaping new favors upon the admiral, to make him desist from his dangerous counsels: but finding all endeavors ineffectual, he began to think of more severe remedies.

Later, alone with Old Horsemeat, he projected the great new thoughts, staring with solemn yellow eyes at the old god, but the latter grew markedly nervous and even showed signs of real fear, so Gummitch desisted.

Old Horsemeat, he projected the great new thoughts, staring with solemn yellow eyes at the old god, but the latter grew markedly nervous and even showed signs of real fear, so Gummitch desisted.

When he desists, a door is opened and the lusts of evil which have occupied the internal of thought are cast out by the Lord and affections of good are implanted in their place.

His views were supported by Lords Ellenborough and Ash-burton, the latter of whom said strong measures should be taken to compel Portugal to desist from the traffic.

After the second attempt fell flat, Palli desisted from trying to draw him out.

His debts mounting with frightening rapidity, Piso needed the Gauls to recoup his losses, so he desisted.

From their kinsmen in the northwest, Beric learned that a new propraetor had arrived to replace Suetonius, for it was reported that the wholesale severity of the latter was greatly disapproved of in Rome, so that his successor had come out with orders to pursue a milder policy, and to desist from the work of extirpation that Suetonius was carrying on.

He led her to a computer terminal that Scottie kept reserved for one use only the terrorism database, DESIST.

Then he slept awhile, and began again with renewed strength, so loudly that I must needs make him desist.

Instantly the captain ran forward, and in a loud voice commanded his crew to desist from hoisting the cutting-tackles, and at once cast loose the cables and chains confining the whales to the ship.