forbear

[fawr-bair]

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verb (used with object), for·bore, for·borne, for·bear·ing.

to refrain or abstain from; desist from.
to keep back; withhold.
Obsolete. to endure.

verb (used without object), for·bore, for·borne, for·bear·ing.

to refrain; hold back.
to be patient or self-controlled when subject to annoyance or provocation.

Origin of forbear

before 900; Middle English forberen, Old English forberan. See for-, bear¹

Related formsfor·bear·er, nounfor·bear·ing·ly, adverbnon·for·bear·ing, adjectivenon·for·bear·ing·ly, adverbun·for·bear·ing, adjective

Synonyms for forbear

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1. forgo, sacrifice, renounce.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for forbearing

gentle, forgiving, moderate, charitable, clement, considerate, easy, humane, humanitarian, indulgent, lenient, long-suffering, merciful, mild, patient, thoughtful, soft-shell

Examples from the Web for forbearing

Contemporary Examples of forbearing

Some readers therefore concluded that the forbearing Dr. Spielvogel must be the hero of the novel.
Who Is Philip Roth’s Portnoy Satirizing?
Bernard Avishai
August 28, 2012

Historical Examples of forbearing

Is she not for ever obliged (as she was pleased to hint to me) to be of the forbearing side?
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
We are grateful to you, Ted and I, for having been so forbearing in the past.
The Raid From Beausejour; And How The Carter Boys Lifted The Mortgage
Charles G. D. Roberts
He was forgiving and forbearing and kinder than I had any right to expect.
Shavings
Joseph C. Lincoln
Could we not pay our friend the compliment of truth, of silence, of forbearing?
Essays, Second Series
Ralph Waldo Emerson
There are insults which even my forbearing spirit will not meekly endure.
Tin-Types Taken in the Streets of New York
Lemuel Ely Quigg

British Dictionary definitions for forbearing

forbear

verb -bears, -bearing, -bore or -borne

(when intr, often foll by from or an infinitive) to cease or refrain (from doing something)
archaic to tolerate or endure (misbehaviour, mistakes, etc)

Derived Formsforbearer, nounforbearingly, adverb

Word Origin for forbear

Old English forberan; related to Gothic frabairan to endure

forbear

noun

a variant spelling of forebear

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 forbearing

forbear

"to abstain," Old English forberan "bear up against, control one's feelings, endure," from for- + beran "to bear" (see bear (v.)). Related: Forbearer; forbearing; forbore.

forbear

"ancestor," late 15c., from fore "before" + be-er "one who exists;" agent noun from be.