obey

[ oh-bey ]
See synonyms for obey on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
  1. to comply with or follow the commands, restrictions, wishes, or instructions of: to obey one's parents.

  2. to comply with or follow (a command, restriction, wish, instruction, etc.).

  1. (of things) to respond conformably in action to: The car obeyed the slightest touch of the steering wheel.

  2. to submit or conform in action to (some guiding principle, impulse, one's conscience, etc.).

verb (used without object)
  1. to be obedient: to agree to obey.

Origin of obey

1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English obeien, from Old French obeir, from Latin oboedīre, equivalent to ob- ob- + audīre “to hear”; -oe- for expected -ū- is unclear

Other words from obey

  • o·bey·a·ble, adjective
  • o·bey·er, noun
  • o·bey·ing·ly, adverb
  • un·o·beyed, adjective
  • un·o·bey·ing, adjective
  • well-o·beyed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use obey in a sentence

  • The scrivener did look up accordingly, with the action of an automaton which suddenly obeys the impulse of a pressed spring.

    The Fortunes of Nigel | Sir Walter Scott

British Dictionary definitions for obey

obey

/ (əˈbeɪ) /


verb
  1. to carry out (instructions or orders); comply with (demands)

  2. to behave or act in accordance with (one's feelings, whims, etc)

Origin of obey

1
C13: from Old French obéir, from Latin oboedīre, from ob- to, towards + audīre to hear

Derived forms of obey

  • obeyer, noun

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