abstention: 弃权

11月22日，德国基民盟领袖安吉拉·默克尔正式宣誓就任二战后德国第八任总理，她也是德国历史上首名女总理。外电报道如下：

Lawmakers voted 397 to 202 with 12 abstentions to make Merkel Germany's eighth leader since World War II, succeeding Gerhard Schroeder, whose seven-year government of Social Democrats¹ and Greens was ousted² by voters Sept. 18.

报道中的abstention指的是“弃权”，abstention from voting意思就是“弃权不投票”。Abstention有“节制、克制”的意思，比如：abstention from alcoholic³ liquors（戒酒）；abstention from exerting pressures（不施加压力）。