Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index Celibacy may refer either to being unmarried or to sexual abstinence. A vow of celibacy is a promise not to enter into marriage but instead to consecrate one's life to service. Some writers prefer this usage of "celibacy", while others use it interchangeably as a synonym for abstinence. The old usage of this term ment "to have sexual intercourse only with one's wife". See also: chastity asexuality clerical celibacy This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.