forbid

[fer-bid, fawr-]

verb (used with object)

forbade, forbad, forbid, forbidden, forbid, forbidding. 

1. to command (a person) not to do something, have something, etc., or not to enter some place.

   She forbade him entry to the house.

   Synonyms: interdict

2. to prohibit (something); make a rule or law against.

   to forbid the use of lipstick; to forbid smoking.

   Synonyms: interdict

3. to hinder or prevent; make impossible.

   Synonyms: deter, obviate, stop, preclude

4. to exclude; bar.

   Burlesque is forbidden in many cities.

forbid

/ fəˈbɪd /

verb

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. may it not happen

Other Word Forms

• forbidder noun
• forbiddance noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of forbid¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English forbeden, Old English forbēodan. See for-, bid ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of forbid¹

Old English forbēodan ; related to Old High German farbiotan , Gothic faurbiudan ; see _for- , _bid

Idioms and Phrases

see god forbid.

Synonym Study

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.

Example Sentences

She has also called for easing constitutional restrictions on the country's Self-Defence Forces, which are forbidden from having offensive capabilities.

From BBC

"It's very haram," she said, using the Arabic word for forbidden.

From BBC

Organizers forbade several of their key moves as their brusque victories weren’t telegenic.

From Los Angeles Times

The attack was carried out on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, when work is forbidden and worshippers gather to pray.

From BBC

US government staff are generally forbidden from speaking to the media, and we have protected the speakers' identities because they could face disciplinary action if they are named.

From BBC

Related Words

• ban 
• block 
• cancel 
• censor 
• deny 
• deprive 
• disallow 
• enjoin 
• exclude 
• freeze 
• halt 
• hinder 
• impede 
• inhibit 
• oppose 
• preclude 
• prevent 
• proscribe 
• restrain 
• restrict