forbid
Americanverb (used with object)
-
forbids,
present (3rd person singular)
-
forbade,
past participle, past
-
forbid,
past participle, past
-
forbad,
past (Archaic)
-
forbidden,
past participle
-
forbidding
present participle
-
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
-
to prohibit (something); make a rule or law against.
to forbid the use of lipstick; to forbid smoking.
- Synonyms:
- interdict
-
to hinder or prevent; make impossible.
-
to exclude; bar.
Burlesque is forbidden in many cities.
verb
-
to prohibit (a person) in a forceful or authoritative manner (from doing something or having something)
-
to make impossible; hinder
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to shut out or exclude
-
may it not happen
Synonym Usage
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.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
forbidsimple
-
forbidssimple
-
have forbadeperfect
-
have forbidperfect
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have forbiddenperfect
-
has forbadeperfect
-
has forbidperfect
-
has forbiddenperfect
-
am forbiddingprogressive
-
are forbiddingprogressive
-
is forbiddingprogressive
-
have been forbiddingperfect progressive
-
has been forbiddingperfect progressive
Past
-
forbadsimple
-
forbadesimple
-
forbidsimple
-
had forbadeperfect
-
had forbidperfect
-
had forbiddenperfect
-
was forbiddingprogressive
-
were forbiddingprogressive
-
had been forbiddingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of forbid
First recorded before 1000; Middle English forbeden, Old English forbēodan. See for-, bid 1
Explanation
When you forbid something, you refuse to allow it. You might have heard your parents say things like, "I forbid you to play ball in the house!" or "I forbid you to have any more parties when we're not home!" Forbid comes from the Old English word forbeodan, meaning "forbid, prohibit." Forbid can also mean "prevent" or "keep from happening." The spare tire on your car will forbid you from driving any faster than 40 miles an hour — any faster and the car will shake. You may have heard forbid used in the expression "God forbid . . ." This refers to something you hope will not happen, so much so that you're asking God for a little help.
Vocabulary lists containing forbid
Beowulf vocabulary
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"The Tragedy of Macbeth," Vocabulary from Act 1
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"Names/Nombres" by Julia Alvarez
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"Sometimes a ban makes things worse. Protesting is a right -- it's like with children, when you forbid something, it becomes even more tempting," one employee remarked to AFP.
From Barron's ● Oct. 24, 2026
"God forbid I raise my standards," she laughs.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
Heaven forbid, should you and your husband predecease your mother, what happens to the house she lives in?
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
The sanctions would forbid most transactions with the ICC after a grace period of six to seven months, according to documents viewed by The Wall Street Journal and U.S. officials.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
We've been in the land of the free for four months and Ma continues to forbid me from going out alone.
From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins
It also broadly forbids these companies from misleading or deceiving customers and prohibits confidentiality agreements.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
The three media organisations have argued that the ban breaches their rights under the First Amendment, which forbids the government from "abridging" the freedom of the press.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
"There is a regulatory vacuum because Article 4 of the 1967 treaty only forbids weapons of mass destruction and nuclear weapons in orbit," said space law expert Laetitia Cesari.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
Trump officials say any such favoritism violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a federal law that forbids discrimination in education and was created to fight segregation and its impact.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
A certain island has a law that forbids anyone from removing its fruit.
From "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snicket
The Meyer decision, for example, overturned a Nebraska law which forbad teaching non-English languages in public and private schools.
From Slate ● Nov. 1, 2022
But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of Thee, and comest Thou to me?
From "Granny's Chapters" (on scriptural subjects) by Lady Mary Ross
His worship the mayor expressly forbad me to speak of what I knew to anyone in our town, or even to you, for he says it would only trouble you needlessly.
From An Old Story of My Farming Days Vol. III (of III). (Ut Mine Stromtid) by Fritz Reuter
My mother forbad me ever to say a word about it.
From Four Phases of Love by Paul Heyse
It was evidently the interest of England, that this superb collection should remain within three days journey of London; but the principle "suum cuique" forbad it.
From Four Years in France or, Narrative of an English Family's Residence there during that Period; Preceded by some Account of the Conversion of the Author to the Catholic Faith by Henry Digby Beste
It was a time of deep-rooted mistrust in policing and a street code that forbade snitching to authorities.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
After the judge forbade them from using certain PowerPoint slides, Halem’s former attorneys decided against presenting an opening statement to jurors, scuttling any possibility of a favorable outcome, Weimortz said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
In an earlier era, George Steinbrenner, owner of the New York Yankees, forbade his players to wear their hair long or have beards.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
The reason for the separation between the businesses, Corley added, had to do with a defunct local law that forbade the two establishments existing under one umbrella.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026
His attempted poaching of Fermi succeeded only in provoking an outraged protest by Columbia to Bush, who forbade the move.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
Gender segregation is standard practice for many Orthodox Jews but is forbidden in public places by the government of socially liberal Tel Aviv.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
Set during the Troubles in Northern Ireland it was a story of cross-community forbidden love between a young Catholic teacher and a married Protestant barrister.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
It provides a sense of community and the thrill of holding forbidden knowledge.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
I was somewhat uncomfortable with this practice, and Heritage found it embarrassing enough that my boss there once told me I was forbidden to mention “ghostwriting” on my résumé.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Though we were forbidden to speak anything but French, the teacher would occasionally use us to practice any of her five fluent languages.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
Diehards might find fault with something or other, but, to quote the author, you’d have to possess a “most forbidding, disagreeable countenance” not to be charmed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
F1 drivers' contracts usually have clauses in them forbidding them from doing 'dangerous sports', such as skiing or scuba diving, although not every driver's contract is the same.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
If your niece’s mother lives there rent-free, the trustee should be comfortable that doing so benefits your niece and there should be no rules forbidding it.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
The rules linking a sequence to a finished organism—biology’s “generative grammar”—remain, he acknowledges, a forbidding problem that may never fully yield.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
After the meadows they had left, this was a strange, forbidding land.
From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams
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