obey
Americanverb (used with object)
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obeys,
present (3rd person singular)
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obeyed,
past participle, past
-
obeying
present participle
-
to comply with or follow the commands, restrictions, wishes, or instructions of.
to obey one's parents.
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to comply with or follow (a command, restriction, wish, instruction, etc.).
-
(of things) to respond conformably in action to.
The car obeyed the slightest touch of the steering wheel.
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to submit or conform in action to (some guiding principle, impulse, one's conscience, etc.).
verb (used without object)
-
obeys,
present (3rd person singular)
-
obeyed,
past participle, past
-
obeying
present participle
verb
-
to carry out (instructions or orders); comply with (demands)
-
to behave or act in accordance with (one's feelings, whims, etc)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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obeyernoun
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obeyableadjective
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unobeyedadjective
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unobeyingadjective
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well-obeyedadjective
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obeyinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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obeysimple
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obeyssimple
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have obeyedperfect
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has obeyedperfect
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am obeyingprogressive
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are obeyingprogressive
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is obeyingprogressive
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have been obeyingperfect progressive
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has been obeyingperfect progressive
Past
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obeyedsimple
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had obeyedperfect
-
was obeyingprogressive
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were obeyingprogressive
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had been obeyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of obey
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English obeien, from Old French obeir, from Latin oboedīre, equivalent to ob- ob- + audīre “to hear”; -oe- for expected -ū- is unclear
Explanation
When you obey, you follow someone's rules or instructions. In the old days, all of a monarchy's citizens were expected to obey the commands of their king or queen. You might be expected to obey the rules your strict parents lay down, or to obey the guidelines of a group or club you belong to. Religious Christians obey God, and soldiers obey the direct orders their commanding officers give them. To obey is to be obedient, and both words come from the Latin obedire, which literally means "listen to," but is used to mean "pay attention to."
Vocabulary lists containing obey
"Nadia the Willful"
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"Rachel the Clever"
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"The New England Primer"
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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:
For much of the nearly 40-minute journey, the driver appeared to stop at red lights and obey traffic laws, Sgt.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026
They want safe streets and drivers of all vehicles to obey the law or pay a price.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
The results indicate that the local geometric components of spacetime obey a version of the first law of thermodynamics.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
"Australia's world-leading social media laws are not failing. But big tech is failing to obey the laws," Communications Minister Anika Wells said at the time.
From Barron's ● Jun. 24, 2026
“Sí, sí, Capitán,” the clever Eduardo shouted back—even though he planned to obey only the first half of that order.
From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein
The gravel bucket obeys that law, since shaking creates heat, which is disordered energy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
This one figures out how to converse with one of the deadliest extraterrestrials in the known universe — and not only does it understand her, it obeys her commands.
From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2025
He added that he "obeys the government and will pay it" as he didn't know the repayment was not legally required.
From BBC ● Feb. 7, 2025
Min-sung obeys Young-tak to ensure access to resources, but at home Myung-hwa can’t hide her disappointment in him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 8, 2023
Then I give Jay the cue to repeat my words, hoping he'll obey me as well as he obeys Rani.
From "Born Behind Bars" by Padma Venkatraman
The family say they obeyed soldiers' orders to stop and posed no danger.
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026
The broader biographical facts are obeyed, but “Amadeus” is fundamentally ahistorical, and sometimes implausible: It is to be trusted only as television.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2026
Six merchant vessels obeyed direction from U.S. forces to reverse course and re-enter an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman, Centcom said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026
Indeed, the characteristic feature of a country ruled by law is the shared understanding that court orders will be obeyed without the necessity of employing force or other modes of coercion.
From Slate ● Feb. 13, 2025
He usually obeyed adults when they told him to do something—or not to do something.
From "Trouble at the Arcade (The Hardy Boys: Secret Files, #1)" by Franklin W. Dixon
Mohamed says the most important thing is to follow Japan's rules, including sorting refuse properly, obeying parking laws, and wearing helmets when riding your bicycle.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
It reenacts the Prophet Abraham's stoning of the devil at three places where Satan is said to have tried to dissuade him from obeying God's command to sacrifice his son Ishmael.
From Barron's ● May 27, 2026
We let ourselves blend into the algorithm, feeding and obeying the machine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 29, 2026
All of this may be of little practical concern since the chances of your ever actually facing a court-martial for obeying these particular unlawful orders are slim to zero.
From Slate ● Nov. 24, 2025
“In politics he is obeying his own conscience, but I think he is mistaken. We have come to an understanding. He will teach me theology and medicine, but I will think as I please.”
From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare
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.
