the marketplace or public square of an ancient Roman city, the center of judicial and business affairs and a place of assembly for the people.
a court or tribunal.
the forum of public opinion.
an assembly, meeting place, television program, etc., for the discussion of questions of public interest.
Also called online forum,. Also called internet forum,. Also called web forum. message board.
the Forum, the forum in the ancient city of Rome.
a meeting or assembly for the open discussion of subjects of public interest
a medium for open discussion, such as a magazine
a public meeting place for open discussion
a court; tribunal
(in South Africa) a pressure group of leaders or representatives, esp Black leaders or representatives
(in ancient Italy) an open space, usually rectangular in shape, serving as a city's marketplace and centre of public business
Plural word for forum The plural form of forum can be either forums or fora. Forums is more widely used. The plurals of several other singular words that end in -um are formed in this way, including gum/gums, possum/possums, or geranium/geraniums. Irregular plurals that are formed like fora, such as curriculum/curricula and memorandum/memoranda, derive directly from their original pluralization in Latin. However, the standard English plural -s ending is often also acceptable for these terms, as in curriculums and memorandums.
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Latin: “marketplace, public place,” akin to forīs, forās “outside,” foris door
A forum is a public discussion. It can refer to a meeting, a meeting house or any conversation that is available publicly. There were forums — large public gathering places — in Ancient Rome; they can still be found across the globe. Traditionally, newspapers were thought of as forums for public discussions but more and more forums are virtual — discussion boards found online. Communities, however, still hold their own forums, or meetings, usually to discuss local issues. When you see the word forum, think public conversation.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Interest rates are a bit too high," conceded Kirill Dmitriev, President Putin's special envoy on foreign investment when we spoke at the forum.
From BBC • Jun. 7, 2026
The photo that initially sparked Parson’s imagination was posted to the online forum 4chan in 2019.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 6, 2026
Underneath it all is Roko’s Basilisk, a thought experiment that originated on the online rationalist forum LessWrong and has proved genuinely radicalizing.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 4, 2026
Valeria, a 32-year-old businesswoman from Moscow at the forum, told AFP she was used to the threat of attacks.
From Barron's • Jun. 4, 2026
But this case was different, and Terryl and the others insisted that Leila, Megan, and Jackie have a forum to express themselves.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
