forget

[fer-get]

verb (used with object)

forgot , forgat, forgotten, forgot, forgetting. .

1. to cease or fail to remember; be unable to recall.

   to forget someone's name.

2. to omit or neglect unintentionally.

   I forgot to shut the window before leaving.

3. to leave behind unintentionally; neglect to take.

   to forget one's keys.

4. to omit mentioning; leave unnoticed.

5. to fail to think of; take no note of.

6. to neglect willfully; disregard or slight.

verb (used without object)

forgot , forgat, forgotten, forgot, forgetting. .

1. to cease or omit to think of something.

forget

/ fəˈɡɛt /

verb

1. (when tr, may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to fail to recall (someone or something once known); be unable to remember

2. (tr; may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to neglect, usually as the result of an unintentional error

3. (tr) to leave behind by mistake

4. (tr) to disregard intentionally

5. (when tr, may take a clause as object) to fail to mention

6. 1. to act in an improper manner

   2. to be unselfish

   3. to be deep in thought

7. an exclamation of annoyed or forgiving dismissal of a matter or topic

Usage

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.

Other Word Forms

• forgetter noun
• forgettable adjective
• unforgetting adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of forget¹

First recorded before 900; for- + get; replacing Middle English foryeten, Old English forg(i)etan; cognate with Old Saxon fargetan, Old High German firgezzan

Word History and Origins

Origin of forget¹

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

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

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

More idioms and phrases containing forget

• forgive and forget

Example Sentences

“Don’t forget, she was Mrs. Los Angeles…I was sitting in the audience and just going, ‘Oh no, oh, no, that’s me.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Lest we forget our past, America is the great democratic experiment precisely because it’s a land of immigrants.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

"I covered a lot of stories over 40 years, but I will never forget it."

Read more on BBC

It's useful for the SNP leadership to show those gathering in Aberdeen for the party's 91st annual get-together that their primary cause has not been forgotten.

Read more on BBC

The secretly shared videotape was so satisfying that people literally died watching it, so frozen in their bliss that they forgot about their own human needs.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• fail 
• ignore 
• neglect 
• overlook 
• skip