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forbid

[fer-bid, fawr-]
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verb (used with object), for·bade or for·bad or for·bid, for·bid·den or for·bid, for·bid·ding.
  1. to command (a person) not to do something, have something, etc., or not to enter some place: to forbid him entry to the house.
  2. to prohibit (something); make a rule or law against: to forbid the use of lipstick; to forbid smoking.
  3. to hinder or prevent; make impossible.
  4. to exclude; bar: Burlesque is forbidden in many cities.

Origin of forbid

before 1000; Middle English forbeden, Old English forbēodan. See for-, bid1
Related formsfor·bid·der, noun
Can be confusedforbade forbid forbidden forebode (see synonym study at the current entry)

Synonyms

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1, 2. interdict. Forbid, inhibit, prohibit, taboo indicate a command to refrain from some action. Forbid, a common and familiar word, usually denotes a direct or personal command of this sort: I forbid you to go. It was useless to forbid children to play in the park. Inhibit implies a checking or hindering of impulses by the mind, sometimes involuntarily: to inhibit one's desires; His responsiveness was inhibited by extreme shyness. Prohibit, a formal or legal word, means usually to forbid by official edict, enactment, or the like: to prohibit the sale of liquor. Taboo, primarily associated with primitive superstition, means to prohibit by common disapproval and by social custom: to taboo a subject in polite conversation. 3. preclude, stop, obviate, deter.

forbade

[fer-bad, -beyd, fawr-]
verb
  1. a simple past tense of forbid.
Also for·bad [fer-bad, fawr-] /fərˈbæd, fɔr-/, forbid.
Can be confusedforbade forbid forbidden forebode (see synonym study at forbid)
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for forbad

Historical Examples

  • This was the feeling which forbad him to retreat from his suicidal purpose.

    Kept in the Dark

    Anthony Trollope

  • But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?

    Jesus the Christ

    James Edward Talmage

  • Was this an assenting answer, or was it the hand of death which forbad an answer?

    Strife and Peace

    Fredrika Bremer

  • But Mamma said he must stay in his box; and forbad my sister to allow him to get on the bed.

    Live Toys

    Emma Davenport

  • The General Assembly forbad the archbishop to enter Glasgow.

British Dictionary definitions for forbad

forbade

forbad (fəˈbæd)

verb
  1. the past tense of forbid

forbid

verb -bids, -bidding, -bade, -bad, -bidden or -bid (tr)
  1. to prohibit (a person) in a forceful or authoritative manner (from doing something or having something)
  2. to make impossible; hinder
  3. to shut out or exclude
  4. God forbid! may it not happen
Derived Formsforbiddance, nounforbidder, noun

Word Origin

Old English forbēodan; related to Old High German farbiotan, Gothic faurbiudan; see for-, bid
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for forbad

forbid

v.

Old English forbeodan "forbid, prohibit," from for- "against" + beodan "to command" (see bid). Common Germanic compound (cf. Dutch verbieden, Old High German farbiotan, German verbieten, Old Norse fyrirbjoða, Gothic faurbiudan "to forbid"). Related: Forbade; forbidden.

forbade

past tense of forbid.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with forbad

forbid

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.