forbid
Americanverb (used with object)
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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
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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.
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to exclude; bar.
Burlesque is forbidden in many cities.
verb
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to prohibit (a person) in a forceful or authoritative manner (from doing something or having something)
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to make impossible; hinder
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to shut out or exclude
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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
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forbidsimple
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forbidssimple
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have forbadeperfect
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have forbidperfect
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have forbiddenperfect
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has forbadeperfect
-
has forbidperfect
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has forbiddenperfect
-
am forbiddingprogressive
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are forbiddingprogressive
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is forbiddingprogressive
-
have been forbiddingperfect progressive
-
has been forbiddingperfect progressive
Past
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forbadsimple
-
forbadesimple
-
forbidsimple
-
had forbadeperfect
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had forbidperfect
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had forbiddenperfect
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was forbiddingprogressive
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were forbiddingprogressive
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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:
If, heaven forbid, something breaks or gets stolen, it will be your responsibility.
From MarketWatch ● May 28, 2026
The main reason drivers do not generally do this is that their contracts forbid it.
From BBC ● May 19, 2026
God forbid a lady feels ravenous during her three p.m. slump.
From Salon ● May 17, 2026
The First Amendment doesn’t forbid objective teaching about the role of faith in history, literature and civic life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 9, 2026
She sucks her teeth, because even saying such a thing—heaven forbid.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
Some of those strikes could violate international law, which forbids attacking civilian infrastructure.
From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2026
One 1937 policy, known as St. Paul’s Heights, forbids any building from obstructing views of the cathedral’s dome from vantage points up to 10 miles away.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Washington has vehemently opposed Tehran's desire to charge tolls in the strait, which international law generally forbids.
From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026
But he cannot be deported due to a 1971 law that forbids the removal of a small group of Commonwealth citizens who arrived in the UK more than 50 years ago.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
The following year, Mexico forbids further American colonization of Texas and prohibits the importation of more slaves into the territory.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
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
His Majesty easily imagin'd that the Queen had been surpriz'd; and being justly angry with Bassompierre, forbad him the Court.
When, however, the imperial pleasure was finally taken, Taou Kwang forbad any further reference to the proposal, saying that he could not “change face.”
From A Vindication of England's Policy with Regard to the Opium Trade by Haines, Charles Reginald
The people were commanded to purify themselves and wash their garments, and Moses forbad any one to approach the mountain.
From The History of Antiquity, Vol. I (of VI) by Duncker, Max
Above all, in Italy, a continuity of lineage, of language, of local names, and in part of civilisation and law, forbad the thought that the great Roman people had ceased to be.
From Dante. An essay. To which is added a translation of De Monarchia. by Church, R. W. (Richard William)
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
That’s because the rule never forbade criticism of the SEC, but only a defendant’s attempt to deny the allegations or facts in a settlement that it “neither admitted nor denied.”
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026
She also forbade local police from cooperating with the agency in any operation conducted solely on immigration grounds.
From Barron's ● May 7, 2026
It forbade companies from paying dividends or buying back stock “until such time as they are able to produce a superior product, on time and on budget.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 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
Proponents say French sugar beet, apple and hazelnut farmers need the insecticides -- forbidden in France since 2018 and 2019 respectively -- to help them compete with their European counterparts.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
They say they’re driven by curiosity, the thrill of roaming forbidden spaces and a zeal to document discoveries—and that they’re careful and know their limits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
"As for things that are forbidden in our religion and do not exist, we do not want to talk about them. We only talk about the match, football and the beauty of the game."
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
What follows is a tale of tension, deception and a forbidden love that sours, reminiscent of Brontë novels.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
Was she also to be forbidden to see all others, even her sisters so dear to her?
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
The cultural chasm between Europeans and Africans presented obstacles to conversion, and a long legacy of church practice forbidding the enslavement of fellow Christians provided grounds to leave slaves in unbelief.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
The New York Times calling it "cold and forbidding", while the Washington Post described it as a "time warp."
From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026
In Zilpha Keatley Snyder’s 1965 novel for young readers, a 12-year-old girl finds an enchanting refuge in a forbidding mansion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
He saw no signs forbidding parking where he pulled over, and the curb was not, by all appearances, painted red, he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026
Low, overcast skies made the forests as forbidding as he remembered them.
From "Touching Spirit Bear" by Ben Mikaelsen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
