əˈbāən(t)s noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle French abeance desire, expectation, from abaer, abair to desire (from a- — from Latin ad- — + baer, bair to yawn, gape, stare, desire, from Medieval Latin batare to yawn, perhaps of imitative origin) + -ance
1. : a lapse in succession during which there is no person in existence in whom a freehold estate, dignity, or title is vested
a peerage revived after an abeyance of many years
— usually used with in
the estate was in abeyance
2. : temporary inactivity or suppression : cessation or suspension (as of a customary practice)
statutes fallen into abeyance
a rule in abeyance since 1935
— used chiefly in the phrases in abeyance or into abeyance