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definitions

forget

[fer-get]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR forget ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), for·got or (Archaic) for·gat; for·got·ten or for·got; for·get·ting.

verb (used without object), for·got or (Archaic) for·gat; for·got·ten or for·got; for·get·ting.

to cease or omit to think of something.

Idioms

    forget oneself, to say or do something improper or unbefitting one's rank, position, or character.

Origin of forget

before 900; for- + get; replacing Middle English foryeten, Old English forg(i)etan; cognate with Old Saxon fargetan, Old High German firgezzan
Related formsfor·get·ta·ble, adjectivefor·get·ter, nounun·for·get·ting, adjective

Usage note

Both forgot and forgotten are used as the past participle of forget : Many have already forgot (or forgotten ) the hard times of the Depression. Only forgotten is used attributively: half-forgotten memories.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for forget

ignore, fail, overlook, neglect, skip, blow, obliterate, omit, discount, drop, slight, blink, trespass, disregard, transgress, disremember, misrecollect, overpass

Examples from the Web for forget

Contemporary Examples of forget

Historical Examples of forget

  • "I should like to forget that you are my nephew," said the old man.

    Brave and Bold

    Horatio Alger

  • And you forget that—that devil—suppose she's as good as her threat?

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • They had talked afterward so feverishly, as if to forget their situation.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • All your frien's may forget you, but Deff 'll nebber forget you.

  • The past slid from him so easily, he forgot even to try to forget.

    Malbone

    Thomas Wentworth Higginson

British Dictionary definitions for forget

forget

verb -gets, -getting or -got or -gotten or archaic, dialect -got

(when tr, may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to fail to recall (someone or something once known); be unable to remember
(tr; may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to neglect, usually as the result of an unintentional error
(tr) to leave behind by mistake
(tr) to disregard intentionally
(when tr, may take a clause as object) to fail to mention
forget oneself
  1. to act in an improper manner
  2. to be unselfish
  3. to be deep in thought
forget it! an exclamation of annoyed or forgiving dismissal of a matter or topic
Derived Formsforgettable, adjectiveforgetter, noun

Word Origin for forget

Old English forgietan; related to Old Frisian forgeta, Old Saxon fargetan, Old High German firgezzan
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 forget
v.

Old English forgietan, from for-, used here with negative force, "away, amiss, opposite" + gietan "to grasp" (see get). To "un-get," hence "to lose" from the mind. A common Germanic construction (cf. Old Saxon fargetan, Old Frisian forjeta, Dutch vergeten, Old High German firgezzan, German vergessen "to forget"). The literal sense would be "to lose (one's) grip on," but that is not recorded in any Germanic language. Related: Forgetting; forgot; forgotten.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with forget

forget

In addition to the idiom beginning with forget

  • forget it
  • forget oneself

also see:

  • forgive and forget
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.